‘He Is Our Man Of The Match’ – Fans Hail Super Eagles Defender, Calvin Bassey After Ivory Coast Masterclass

Fulham defender Calvin Bassey has earned high praise after a commanding performance in Nigeria’s hard-fought win against Ivory Coast on Thursday night.

Bassey helped Nigeria’s Super Eagles to a clean sheet after a narrow 1-0 victory against the AFCON 2023 host in their second match in Group A.

The versatile defender was one of a few changes made by Nigeria coach Jose Peseiro following the disappointing draw against Equatorial Guinea in their opener.

Skipper, William Troost-Ekong, netted the decisive winner via a well-struck penalty in the second half but it was Bassey who has earned a deserved praise from Nigerians.

Bassey, 22, put on a defensive masterclass, helping Nigeria to neutralise the Ivorian attack led by Jean-Philippe Krasso, drawing comparisons to Italian legend Paolo Maldini.

Nigerians took to social media to express their opinions about the Fulham defender, with many of them describing him as their man of the match against the Elephants while another fan compared him to Maldini.

“The way Calvin Bassey take frustrate dem Diakite sha. I thought dem talk say our boys na custard, dem no fit handle heavy duty African player’s aggression????” famous Pidgin commentator, Chief Suo said on X.

“Said it here Calvin should have started that last game, man used a pairing he has never tried and just expected it to work” another Nigerian stated.

“Calvin Bassey with a MOTM performance at CB and LB,” added another impressed fan added.

Calvin Bassey started off at centre-back before he replaced Zaidu Sanusi, who was subbed off after what looked like an injury.