We Need To Make Amends - Yobo

Nigerian football captain says his side are ready to make amends for embarrassing defeats to Argentina and Greece at the World Cup.

The Super Eagles lost 1-0 to Argentina and 2-1 to 2004 European Champions Greece, and Yobo told the BBC that the final group game against South Korea can't come soon enough.

"For us we would have played today if we could have. It has been the most frustrating few days ever for the team.

"You are hyped up for the World Cup and then perform like that. It's a final chance against South Korea, we are even lucky that we have games to put it right."

Reports say players were even involved in a shouting match in the dressing room at the end of the Greece match but Yobo was quick to play it down.

"That is not true, we are all united in one goal and fight, which is to redeem our battered image out there and we want the fans to know we feel their disappointments and frustrations.

In the build-up to the second Greece goal the captain was on the ground after a collision before Enyeama spilled Alexandros Tziolis's long-range shot into the path of Torosidis, who buried the chance in the 71st minute.

"I went blank and blurred under few seconds after the collision, I thought it was a foul but then the ball was at the back of the net, I felt bad but we have to move on now.

"The most worrying aspect at the final whistle was the way our spirit fell to bits in disappointments," Yobo told BBC Sport.

"We have all learnt a lot about the closeness of the players. On Tuesday everyone is ready to fight and die for the colour of the country."

But no team in World Cup history has ever lost more than one group stage game and gone on to reach the next round, yet Joseph Yobo is incredibly optimistic they can earn a place in the history book.

A single-goal victory in their final match against South Korea and even a single-goal loss for Greece against the table-topping Argentina would see Nigeria through on goal difference.

"We now have a possible mission towards the next round," Everton defender Yobo said.

"Surprisingly, when we walked off that pitch against Greece we thought it was all over but now there is a second chance for us. Many people insist it will be impossible but we have been written off several times during the qualifiers yet we made it here."

Nigeria left it late to qualify for the World Cup, with an 81st-minute winner against Kenya in the final qualifier seeing them through.

With midfielder Sani Kaita ruled out due to a red card offence and a defensive crisis ahead of Tuesday's final group game against South Korea in Durban, Yobo is still holding out optimism.

"The odds are certainly not against us because this team can fight and die on the pitch against the Koreans," said Yobo.

"With our left-backs (Taye Taiwo and Elderson Echiejile) battling with injury, Kaita ruled out we are not short of confidence going into the final group game.

The Super Eagles has come under severe criticism from the local media as well as aggrieved fans back home following defeats against Argentina and Greece.

But Yobo has called for support as he gears his side up to face a South Korean team also chasing a place in the next round.

"We've been hit by a lot of problems, we haven't taken our chances in front of goal, and we've come under severe criticism and possibly, at times, rightly so.

"I think we should stop throwing blames or continue to live in the past. We need the support of the fans and media because there is still a lot to fight for.

"We say sorry to the fans and media, we know they are disappointed but we promise to show (on the pitch) that we can achieve success collectively."