By Ebube Dike

Former Super Eagles interim coach, Augustine Eguavoen have disclosed that the team lacked the hunger and character to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, www.bestchoicesports.com.ng can report.

Nigeria failed to qualify for her 7th World Cup appearance on Tuesday last week after the Eagles were held to a one-all draw by Black Stars of Ghana in Abuja.

Ghana qualified for the global showpiece on away goal’s rule leaving millions of Nigerians downcast.

But speaking in a television programme, the 56-year-old Eguavoen said the team lacked character and zeal to reach the Qatar mundial “We lacked the character, zeal to beat Ghana when it mattered most.

“The Ghanaians showed they wanted it more than our boys and that was why it ended that way,” he said

He noted that there was no fighting spirit in the team adding that despite being the better team in Abuja, the Eagles failed to fly.

“We didn’t do any of that. We did not fight or push enough for the winner and how do you do that? It is with fast-paced football, creating chances but that didn’t happen.

“In Kumasi, the Ghanaians were better but in Abuja, the Eagles were the better side but could not win,”

Going further, the former Enyimba International FC Coach said he was not a failure with the team because he did not lose the match rather lost the ticket

“The games between Ghana and Nigeria are always very difficult. If we had lost in Kumasi or in Abuja, I would have regarded myself as a failure but we lost on away goal

“We didn’t lose the game but we lost the ticket to qualify for the World Cup.”

It could be recalled that Eguavoen’s Super Eagles had earlier in the year crashed out of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON in Cameroon following a 1-0 loss to Tunisia in the Round if 16.