“I’M smiling because it’s good for us to lose a game. If we win again today, some people would believe that we will be the world champions,” proclaimed Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr after last night’s defeat in a match where the coaches of both sides were left satisfied.

A hard-fought 2-0 win for Serbia over fellow World Cup qualifiers Nigeria at The Hive stadium followed criticism after their defeat last Friday against Morocco.

Serbia flung themselves at Nigeria from the start with a series of raking cross-field passes that resulted in several chances for Aleksandar Mitrovic.