Sevilla head coach, Garcia Pimienta, constructively criticized the Nigerian duo at the club, Chidera Ejuke and Kelechi Iheanacho, praising their brief display, but urging them to give more for the team, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Nigerian pair joined the record UEFA Europa League winners this summer for free and came off the bench in Sevilla’s loss to Villareal last night.
Arnaut Danjuma broked the deadlock for the Yellow Submarines two minutes into the game, before Dodi Lukebakio scored the equalizer for Sevilla just before half-time.
Ejuke and Iheanacho came off the bench with thirteen minutes to spare before Sevilla caved in the last minute, conceding a goal from Ayoze Perez.
Speaking after the game, Pimienta, praised Ejuke for his brief display and urged him to be more consistent with creating changes.
“Ejuke? We wanted to give him a bit of fresh air, and I think he’s done very well, creating dangerous one-on-one situations. He has unbalanced plays, and he can go outside and inside. He has to be much more consistent and finish the play, but he’s a player we consider, and we’ve seen that he’s done very well,” the 50-year-old gaffer said in quotes revealed by Futbol Fantasy.
Concerning Iheanacho, Pimienta revealed the former Leicester City man was not up to speed because he still struggled with fitness issues.
“Perhaps he was the one who had the most problems because he played for less time, but he moved very well in that difficult moment of the match, and he had a very clear chance to score, and the goalkeeper was able to stop that play. In the end, we have high-quality players, both those who started and those on the bench, and that’s what it’s all about. It’s difficult for me, that everyone is prepared and that they are capable of playing from the start or changing the match as was the case in the second half with the people who came on as substitutes,” the Spaniard added.
Sevilla have just one point from their opening two games and need to start winning games to move up the table.