Mali put a spanner in the works of Finidi George's audition for the job of Nigeria coach on a permanent basis with a 2-0 win over the Super Eagles on Tuesday in Marrakesh.
But the former Ajax star remains positive after two games, while ruing the mistakes that cost them against Mali.
"I think it was just a few mistakes that cost us the match," George said.
"It was not a bad game. Good intensity, we created a couple of chances, but didn't score. And in a game like this, if you don't score and you make mistakes, you will be punished. I'm happy with the way the boys played and it is quite positive."
The biggest of those mistakes was arguably Chidozie Awaziem's error, which handed El Bilal Toure a gift early in the first half, as he tried to play a low-percentage ball across goal with the opposition lurking. The Atlanta striker needed no further invitation to open the scoring in the first half.
As Nigeria pushed hard for their opening goal, Kamory Doumbia made the contest safe with three minutes remaining, taking advantage of more iffy Nigerian defending to break free and rifle into the roof of the net from mid-range.
The result was a big win for Mali, who are ranked 47th, well below Nigeria's 28 -- and have to go back almost half a century for their last win over their West African neighbours. The last time that happened was in 1975, when the then Eagles lost 1-4 to Mali in a friendly.
With midfielder Frank Onyeka unavailable, George made four changes to the side that beat Ghana on Friday -- and left striker Umar Sadiq on the bench despite not starting Cyriel Dessers. Instead, Kelechi Iheanacho was handed the lead striker role, with Moses Simon behind him. Dessers was soon back in after Simon was stretchered off injured.
Despite looking the more imposing side, Nigeria struggled to deal with the Mali press, even as they attempted to play heroically out the back. It was that press and the inability to deal with it that forced Awaziem's error.
Attacking is in Nigeria's DNA
Watching the team against Ghana, and then against Mali, it was clear to see that while Jose Peseiro's decision to build his team on a defensive foundation was not an entirely bad strategy, it did leave the team hamstrung.
Their passing and movement, while not exactly in the top percentile on the night, showed glimpses of what they are capable of doing when they take the game to their opponents.
Those defensive tactics also stifled midfielder Alex Iwobi at the Africa Cup of Nations, but these games brought out the old Iwobi and showed that he can excel in a team that plays football on the front foot.
Dessers window closing
Dessers is a good striker, and he has earned his spurs in Europe with Rangers. It was sad to see him left out of the Nigeria team over the last two years, and his return was more than welcome.
But in team as stacked in the striking department as Nigeria, just being good enough is not good enough. Every opportunity needs to be grabbed. Dessers has not done so. Over the course of two games, the forward had enough chances to win both games twice over, but missed multiple opportunities.
He put away a penalty kick against Ghana with superb precision, but in a field this crowded more is needed for separation.
Victor Osimhen, of course, is the top dog, but then there are Iheanacho, Sadiq, Taiwo Awoniyi, Victor Boniface, Paul Onuachu and more -- all fighting for just that second spot behind Osimhen.
After Dessers' debut, it took almost a year before he was called back in. And after getting called up by again by Peseiro in his first game in charge, it has taken nearly two years for Dessers to make a return to the Nigeria squad. On the evidence of his performance over these two games, and especially on Tuesday against Mali, it might be a while until he gets another call.
Has George done enough?
Losing to Mali has arguably sent George back to square one, irrespective of the good things he has done with the team. The jury is and will remain out as the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) weigh options -- and try to map that to pay a competitive salary.
All things considered, George has put himself in a great position for the job. As part of the technical team for the last 21 months, George has not made any drastic changes to Peseiro's tactics. Instead, he has improved them, and injected an attacking verve.
Despite being without core members of the team, he did manage to eke out a win over Ghana -- not the strongest of opposition, admittedly.
He has also done a fine job of navigating the line between risk and caution, trying out a few more players and leaving Nathan Tella on the bench all 180 minutes.
The NFF are in a bind. This was the last window before the World Cup qualifiers in June. A new coach will have no time to do anything but go straight into match preparation. This almost leaves George as the default choice. But then there is Emmanuel Amuneke, who has more experience at this level -- and knows the players and the culture of the team. He would need no time to bed in.