Eagles soar into the unknown (Group B team profile)

LAGOS - With a new coach and grab bag of talented players, Nigeria are perhaps the biggest question mark from Africa ahead of the 2010 World Cup finals this summer.

An opening match on the second day of the event against two-time World Cup winners, Argentina, in Johannesburg figures to be the key contest for the Super Eagles in Group B, which also includes Greece and South Korea.

The West Africans are trying to avoid a repeat of the last time they were at a World Cup in 2002, when they lost to Argentina in their game and went on to finish bottom of their group with just a point from three contests.

With over a decade since their heyday on the world scene, Africa’s most populous country is hungry for the relative successes of the mid-1990s, when the Eagles went to the second round at USA ‘94 and France ‘98 after winning the opening group. They also won an African championship in 1994 and claimed a memorable gold medal at the Olympics at Atlanta in 1996.

This weight of expectation was heavy as they barely battled their way through an up-and-down preliminary campaign to reach South Africa 2010, qualifying in the final round with a come-from-behind 3-2 victory in Kenya.

Half-time substitute Obafemi Martins, who should be the Eagles’ main man in attack this summer, was the hero against Kenya, scoring the equalizer and ultimately the winner in the 83rd minute of the must-win contest.

The narrow qualification meant the public was behind the sacking of coach Shaibu Amodu after the team finished third in an equally mixed Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year.

Swede Lars Lagerback, a veteran in his homeland but a novice in Africa, was brought in just months ago with more problems than time to deal with them.

One of his chief concerns will be a lack of regular playing time for key players at the end of the club season, most importantly central defensive lynchpin Joseph Yobo, who has fallen out of favour at Everton.

Yobo’s clubmate Yakubu Aiyegbeni and the talismanic Nwankwo Kanu of Portsmouth also struggled for time in the first team, although they both started to feature more at the end of the season.

Lagerbacks other big hurdle is finding enough creativity in a Nigerian midfield rich in holding midfielders. The key man is John Obi Mikel, who will be counted on to drive more attacks forward than he usually does for Chelsea.

Peter Odemwingie is the main instigator in the final third, typically from the wing. Attacking options also come from an exciting group of full-backs, with Marseilles Taye Taiwo the prototype down the left.

Outside of their demanding supporters, few expect much from the Super Eagles, but the experienced Lagerback insists the dark horses have significant potential.

Nigeria have a great chance to do well in the World Cup,” he said recently. Playing football at this level is all about winning. I think there is a realistic chance for Nigeria to go a long way in the World Cup in South Africa.”

THE COACH - LARS LAGERBACK

Lars Lagerback, 61, is the first Scandinavian to coach Nigeria, and the Super Eagles job is his first outside of Sweden. This summers World Cup will be his second bite at the apple after he failed to guide his native country to the finals. Lagerbacks reputation is based exclusively on his long tenure with Sweden - as their B-team coach, and as assistant manager, co-manager and finally manager with the full national team.

He led the Swedes at five consecutive major finals - from Euro 2000 through to the failure to reach South Africa 2010 - and went to the second round with the team at both the World Cup in 2002 (at the expense of Nigeria) and again four years later.

THE STAR - JOHN OBI MIKEL

Still just 23 years old, John Obi Mikel came to the worlds attention as a teenager after Chelsea and Manchester United fought over the right to sign him.

The midfielder was also named the second-best player at the U-20 World Cup in 2005 behind only Argentina phenomenon Lionel Messi, and hes become the next great hope for Nigerians everywhere after his increasingly mature performances for the Blues in the English Premier League.

A tough tackler with a good read of the game, Mikel was recently named captain by Lagerback, and the Super Eagles seem likely to only go as far as Mikel can take them.