'This was somewhat of a surprise' - Rwanda coach reveals the formation he expected Super Eagles to use

Rwanda head coach, Torsten Spittler, has admitted that his team was caught off guard by the tactical approach of the Super Eagles during their 2-1 victory at the Godswill Akpabio stadium on Monday evening.

The win marked Rwanda’s first-ever triumph over Nigeria in six international encounters, delivering a memorable upset in front of a stunned home crowd.

The Super Eagles, who had already secured their qualification for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco, opened the scoring after a goalless first half. 

AC Milan winger Samuel Chukwueze dazzled fans in the 59th minute with a brilliant solo goal, slicing through three Rwandan defenders before calmly finding the back of the net.

Rwanda, however, staged a determined comeback. Ange Mutsinzi equalized in the 72nd minute with a powerful header off a pinpoint cross from Emmanuel Kwizera. 

Just three minutes later, Innocent Nshuti stunned the hosts further by slotting the ball through the legs of Nigerian goalkeeper Maduka Okoye, completing a swift turnaround.

Despite the landmark victory, Rwanda’s campaign for the 2025 AFCON tournament ended in disappointment, as they failed to secure qualification. 

Spittler, however, expressed pride in his team’s performance, crediting their resilience and adaptability in navigating Nigeria's unexpected tactical setup.

In his post-match remarks, the 63-year-old tactician admitted that Nigeria’s technical crew caught him off guard with their tactical approach. 

The German coach had anticipated Nigeria sticking to their traditional 3-4-3 system, but Eguavoen surprised him by employing a more aggressive 4-2-3-1 formation.

"We expected Nigeria to play as usual in a 3-4-3 formation. They changed the system, this was somehow a surprise, but my team can handle situations like that so it was not a big thing,” Spittler said.

Spittler further commended his players for executing his pre-match instructions, which aimed to disrupt Nigeria’s rhythm.

"What I told my boys is it's a difficult situation for the Nigerian team because they don't know if it's a friendly match now or whatever because they already qualified.

"I told them, 'don't let them enjoy this evening' and that's what we did. We gave them a hard time from the beginning, and you could see in the faces of Nigerian players they really didn't enjoy it and they were asking more or less the coach why they have to play today and the others can rest on the bench.

"That's exactly the situation I wanted to have. This doesn't mean we are winning the match but this is the basis for having a chance against Nigeria. 

"If they don't like to play, then it's only 50 percent, and I think this was one of the reasons we got three points here."

While Rwanda’s AFCON hopes have ended, the victory will boost their confidence ahead of the rematch in March 2025, when both teams will face off during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Adeyemi Adewale

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