No pity for World Cup flop Messi, says Nigeria’s Gernot Rohr

in sports •  6 years ago 

The Super Eagles need to book a place in the knockout phase but must avoid defeat against the striker and his Argentine mates

Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr says his side will show no mercy to misfiring Lionel Messi and Argentina at the Saint Petersburg Stadium on Tuesday.

Prior to the crunch tie, the Barcelona star failed to impress for the South American giants as he missed a penalty in a 1-1 draw with Iceland and was silenced in their 3-0 loss to Croatia.

The 31-year-old looks destined for his last World Cup outing with his Albiceleste side on the brink of an early exit from the tournament, except they fight hard and subdue the three-time African champions.

RELATED
ARGENTINA VS NIGERIA: TV CHANNEL, LIVE STREAM, SQUAD NEWS & PREVIEW
ALEX IWOBI & JOHN OGU REVEAL NIGERIA’S MISSION AGAINST ARGENTINA
MESSI BACKED BY SAMPAOLI TO DELIVER FOR ARGENTINA WHEN IT MATTERS MOST
VIDEO: ARGENTINA STARS PLAY DRUM FOR SINGING FANS AHEAD OF MUST-WIN NIGERIA MATCH
However, the German insists his side are poised to get their first World Cup win over the South Americans giants.

Messi PS

“We love this great player Messi, everybody loves him,” Rohr told media at the press conference in Saint Petersburg on Monday.

“But the question for us is not if it’s the last World Cup for him. We are not here to watch him play. We’re here to get a result.

“We are professionals and we have to defend the colours of Nigeria. In football, there is no mercy, no pity. Everybody wants to win.”

by Taboola Sponsored Links From The Web
Nigerian Football Fans: Try This Football Betting APP
SportyBet
Discover the Name of your Personal Guardian Angel with Angela's Free Reading today
guardian-angel-messenger.com
Do you want to have a flat stomach? Read here
Green coffee
6 reasons why you should choose to study in Australia
Deakin University, Australia
COMMENTS (0)
EDITORS' PICKS
Rohr: We‘re confident of beating Argentina
Iwobi, Ogu reveal mission against Argentina
Sampaoli hits back at 'criminal' critics
Argentina vs Nigeria: TV, stream & preview
Messi backed to deliver when it matters most
Argentina must be 100% motivated to beat Nigeria - Trezeguet
African All Stars Transfer News & Rumours LIVE
Next article:
World Cup 2018 last 16: Who could England, Brazil, Mexico & more face in knockouts?

WORLD CUP
World Cup 2018 last 16: Who could England, Brazil, Mexico & more face in knockouts?
Ryan Kelly
Getty Images

WORLD CUP

KOREA REPUBLIC

CROATIA

RUSSIA

BRAZIL

SWEDEN

TUNISIA

SWITZERLAND

PANAMA

MOROCCO

SPAIN

COLOMBIA

SAUDI ARABIA

JAPAN

URUGUAY

EGYPT

IRAN

PORTUGAL

FRANCE

AUSTRALIA

ICELAND

ARGENTINA

DENMARK

PERU

NIGERIA

SERBIA

COSTA RICA

GERMANY

MEXICO

BELGIUM

ENGLAND

POLAND

SENEGAL
Goal takes a look at the possible match-ups in the knockout stage as the group stage heats up in matchday two

The World Cup is past the halfway point, with the group stage having served up some exciting games, with a few surprising results.

The final round of fixtures are being played out and we will soon know which teams will progress to the last 16 of the tournament.

The knockout stage fixture schedule is already laid out, but as yet we can only project the potential match-ups.

RELATED
MEXICO HERO LOZANO REVELS IN 'BEST GOAL OF MY LIFE' AFTER GERMANY GIANT-KILLING
HARRY BEATS HARRY: ENGLAND RATINGS TOP ROYAL WEDDING AS KANE DOUBLE DELIVERS DRAMATIC WIN
'ENGLAND'S ATTACK CAN BE BEST IN THE WORLD' - KANE, RASHFORD & STERLING EXCITE JENAS
WHO WILL WIN WORLD CUP 2018? THE FAVOURITES, OUTSIDERS, UNDERDOGS & LATEST ODDS
So, who could the likes of England, Brazil and Mexico face in the last 16? Goal brings you the permutations.

World Cup last-16 permutations
Group stage games will be wrapped up on June 28. Some groups have already been decided while others are dependent on results on matchday three.
The knockout stage kicks off with the last 16 and the first of those eight matches take place on June 30, with the others following on July 1, 2 and 3.

First up on June 30, the winners of Group C take on the runners-up in Group D, with the winners of Group A playing the runners-up from Group B later that day.

On July 1, the winners of Group B play the runners-up from Group A in the first game, with the winners of Group D facing the runners-up from Group C in the second game of the day.

The winners of Group E take on the runners-up from Group F in the first game on July 2 and the Group G winners play the Group H runners-up that evening.

The final round of last 16 games takes place on July 3, with Group F's winners playing Group E's runners-up in the first game and the winners of Group H playing Group G's runners-up.

You can see the projected last 16 ties in the table below, which will be updated accordingly.

Date Team Result Team
June 30 France - Nigeria
June 30 Uruguay - Portugal
July 1 Spain - Russia
July 1 Croatia - Denmark
July 2 Brazil - Germany
July 2 England - Senegal
July 3 Mexico - Switzerland
July 3 Japan - Belgium
Bold denotes qualified and position assured.
Bold and italics denotes qualified but position not assured.
Italics denotes position but no qualification assured.

(Last updated: Monday June 25)

Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal World Cup

France could well find themselves up against Nigeria in the last 16, if the Super Eagles are able to beat Lionel Messi's Argentina in the last group stage fixture. However, if the Super Eagles lose to Argentina and Iceland lose to Croatia, the South American side will face up against France in the next round.

Elsewhere, tournament hosts Russia will face off against 2010 winners Spain, which represents a difficult task indeed.

From Group G, England or Belgium will face either Senegal, Colombia or Japan, while Brazil could find themselves up against Germany, Mexico or Sweden.

Defending champions Germany looked to be crashing out at the group stage after they fell behind to Sweden in their second game, but managed to equalise and then net an injury-time free-kick through Toni Kroos to remain second in Group F.

World Cup quarter-final permutations
Once the last 16 ties are decided, there will be a break of two days before the action resumes with the quarter-finals on July 6 and 7.

The quarter-final games will see the teams that emerge from from either Group A or B and Group C or D go head-to-head, while teams that get out of Group E or F will play those from either G or H.

You can see the potential quarter-final match-ups in the table below.

Date Team Result Team
July 6 France/Nigeria - Uruguay/Portugal
July 6 Spain/Russia - Croatia/Denmark
July 7 Brazil/Germany - England/Senegal
July 7 Mexico/Switzerland - Japan/Belgium
by Taboola Sponsored Links From The Web
Your Reading of the Angels for 2018. Live your dreams and fulfill your most secret wishes!
guardian-angel-messenger.com
Do you want to remove wrinkles around eyes? This will help!
Hendel's Garden
Say Goodbye To Wrinkles. Apply This Cream Every Morning
Hendel's Garden
Natural Way To Lose Weight Is Revealed. Details Here
Green Coffee
COMMENTS ()
EDITORS' PICKS
Rohr: We‘re confident of beating Argentina
Iwobi, Ogu reveal mission against Argentina
No pity for World Cup flop Messi - Rohr
Sampaoli hits back at 'criminal' critics
Argentina vs Nigeria: TV, stream & preview
Messi backed to deliver when it matters most
Argentina must be 100% motivated to beat Nigeria - Trezeguet
African All Stars Transfer News & Rumours LIVE
Next article:
Should Nigeria's Gernot Rohr stick with Iceland plan against Argentina?
Next article:
Spain defending 'not the way forward', admits Hierro in error-strewn campaign
Next article:
Ronaldo sadness no surprise to Santos after penalty miss in Portugal stalemate
Next article:
From Romero's wife to Simeone's Whatsapp - how Argentina are attacking their goalkeeping disaster.

Authors get paid when people like you upvote their post.
If you enjoyed what you read here, create your account today and start earning FREE STEEM!
Sort Order:  

Congratulations @timgreat! You received a personal award!

Happy Birthday! - You are on the Steem blockchain for 1 year!

You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking

Do not miss the last post from @steemitboard:

Are you a DrugWars early adopter? Benvenuto in famiglia!
Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!

Congratulations @timgreat! You received a personal award!

Happy Steem Birthday! - You are on the Steem blockchain for 2 years!

You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking

Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!