Sports

Nigeria vs Benin: Super Eagles kickoff AFCON 2021 qualifier against Squirrels in Uyo

Wednesday, November 13, 2019 at 4:22 PM by Oluwatomiwa Babalola

- Nigeria vs Benin will take centre stage today as the race to qualify for AFCON 2021 begins

- Both teams have met five times and the Super Eagles have triumphed in all of their meetings

- Gernot Rohr's men will hope to get their qualification race on a winning note

Nigeria's Super Eagles will hope to kick off their race to qualify for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations championship in Cameroon with a win against the Squirrels of Benin Republic.

The two teams are apparently not new to each other having met five times in the continental competition - with the three-time African kings winning all matches.

Despite winning bronze at the 2019 edition of the tournament staged in Egypt in the summer, coach Gernot Rohr's men are battle-ready to ensure they start on a winning note.

They have had two test games against Brazil and Ukraine and they were unbeaten in both encounters - and they will hope they can step up their game when the match gets underway this evening at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium.

Read also

Fans slam Golden Eaglets for making them stay up late and still lose to the Netherlands

PAY ATTENTION: Install Pitch Football App for FREE to get the latest football News & Scores

As usual, Nigeria's technical adviser Rohr does not leave anything to chance as the German-born tactician has invited his best legs all around Europe to give him a bright start in the qualifiers.

With players like Rangers FC midfielder Joe Aribo, waiting to make his competitive debut on a good note having scored two goals in his first two matches for the Super Eagles.

Benin, on the other hand, are no pushovers having made some impact at the 2019 edition of the African topmost footballing event few months back.

They crashed out of the competition at the quarterfinal stage following their 1-0 defeat to eventual runners-up Senegal.

Meanwhile, it will be worthy to note that they dumped North African side Morocco out of the championship at the round of 16 stage to reach the last four of the tourney.

Read also

Nigeria crash out of U17 World Cup following disappointing loss to Netherlands

The Squirrels reached the knockout stage after forcing Ghana, Cameroon and Guinea Bissau to draw in their games.

READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng

And the Nigerian team must be wary of their defensive tactics as the visitors know how to soak pressure and probably hit on the counter while aiming for a draw would be their best plan.

However, Nigeria will return to action against Lesotho on Sunday, November 17, away from home, while Benin battle Sierra Leone as the qualification process continues.

Legit.ng earlier reported that Nigeria's U23 national team finally clinch their first win at the ongoing U23 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt with an emphatic 3-1 win over Zambia.

A goal each from Okoronkwo Orji, Taiwo Awoniyi and Kelechi Nwakali sealed the victory for the defending champions.

They will now switch focus to last group game against South Africa in a bid to progress to the next round of the championship.