Nigeria U17 team coach Emmanuel Amuneke has stated his team were not at their best and Croatia deserved their 2-1 win in a final group game of the 2015 FIFA U17 World Cup in Chile.
But despite the loss, Nigeria finished top of Group A with six points from three matches with Croatia runners-up on five points for both teams to automatically progress to the next stage.
Amuneke said his team have to play more as a team going forward.
"My players wanted to win, but we were not the best tonight. The Croats have asked us many problems. They prevented us from playing our game and deserved to win,” he said.
“My players are very talented, but still have room for improvement collectively."
Nigeria will now face the third best losers in Groups C, D and E in the Round of 16.