Nigerian defender Calvin Bassey has voiced his unwavering conviction that the Super Eagles will preserve their dominant form as they transition into the elimination phase of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. The national team concluded their preliminary campaign with a convincing 3-1 triumph over Uganda on Tuesday, ensuring a perfect record of nine points from three matches.
Following the finalization of the group standings, the Confederation of African Football confirmed that Éric Chelle’s squad will face Mozambique in the Round of 16 as they continue their pursuit of a fourth continental crown.
The Fulham center-back addressed the media via Sporty TV following the victory in Fès, highlighting the team’s desire to maintain their high intensity. Bassey noted that the squad utilized the group stages to demonstrate their technical superiority and now intends to leverage that success in the upcoming knockout rounds.
“Same energy. You know, we’ve shown our quality in this group stage, and hopefully we can just keep building on this momentum,” Bassey stated during the post-match interview.
Bassey further clarified that the players approached the fixture against the Cranes with significant focus, despite having already booked their place in the next round prior to kickoff. He dismissed any suggestion that the team lacked motivation for the final group match, asserting that the players viewed the encounter as a critical test of their professional standards.
“This game was very important for us. Some people might have seen it like, ‘yeah, we’re already through,’” he explained. “But us, the players, we saw it as an opportunity to stamp a mark and show that, regardless of who we play, we’re going to give 100 per cent.”
The 26-year-old defender now shifts his attention toward refining the team’s defensive structure before the encounter with Mozambique. While Nigeria leads the tournament’s scoring charts with eight goals—representing their most productive group-stage performance in modern AFCON history—the backline has yet to record a shutout.
Five different Nigerian players contributed to the scoresheet during the opening round, yet the team also surrendered four goals across their three Group C matches. Bassey and his defensive colleagues aim to rectify these lapses to provide a more stable foundation for Nigeria’s potent attacking unit as the stakes rise in the knockout competition.
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