Russia head coach Valery Karpin has dismissed Eric Chelle’s explanation that tactical changes helped the Super Eagles stage their dramatic comeback in Tuesday’s 3-3 international friendly draw in Nizhny Novgorod.

Nigeria appeared to be heading for defeat after Russia established a 3-1 lead early in the second half.

Kelechi Iheanacho put the Super Eagles ahead in the 10th minute, but Lechi Sadulaev and Matvey Kislyak turned the game around before half-time.

Aleksey Miranchuk then extended Russia’s advantage in the 54th minute, putting the hosts in a commanding position.

However, Peter Edokpolor pulled one back for Nigeria in the 78th minute before Akor Adams completed the comeback with a dramatic equaliser in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

Speaking after the match, Chelle suggested that changes to Nigeria’s attacking approach after the interval had caused problems for the Russian defence.

Karpin, however, rejected the suggestion that tactical adjustments were responsible for Nigeria’s fightback.

Asked whether he agreed with Chelle’s assessment, the Russia coach responded bluntly:

“What tactical changes? He fielded different players, and that was it. What other tactical changes were there?"

Karpin was also asked about Russia’s defensive collapse after conceding twice despite holding a two-goal advantage late in the encounter.

The Russian coach attributed the goals to individual errors rather than a broader tactical problem.

“It was an accident. Absolutely. The first goal – it was clear what happened. The episode with the third goal was quite strange,” Karpin said.

Russia had controlled large portions of the contest and remained ahead even after Nigeria reduced the deficit to 3-2.

Karpin insisted he never felt his team were in danger of surrendering their lead, maintaining that Russia continued to control the game.

“No, there was no such premonition. We continued to dominate the game. We conceded another goal after an error on our own during a goal kick,” he concluded.