As one of the most in-form teams during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, Nigeria could strengthen their grip on group A when they take on Sao Tome at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium on Sunday evening.
Kick-off is at 6:00pm (SA, GMT+2)
As another dead rubber in this week’s Afcon qualifiers, the Super Eagles require a single point to remain at the top of group A. After five matches played, Nigeria recorded four wins en route to qualifying for the upcoming tournament.
Nigeria are also one of the leading goal scorers during the qualifying stages, netting a total of 15 goals, seven of which belong to star striker Victor Osimhen.
Despite their impressive showing during the Afcon qualifiers, Nigeria suffered an uncharacteristic 1-0 home defeat to Guinea Bissau in March, which proved to be their only loss in group A.
PESEIRO STILL IN CHARGE
With the Nigerian Football Federation happy with coach Jose Peseiro’s showings at the helm, it was recently reported that the Portuguese mentor signed a contract extension, albeit alongside a salary cut.
"Both the technical committee and the NFF board agreed that it actually makes sense to keep Peseiro," the Nigerian Football Federation said.
"We actually considered the fast-approaching World Cup qualifiers and this new deal expires at the end of the Nations Cup. There is the general feeling that the coach may also feel like he has some unfinished business with the team."
As for Sao Tome, Adriano Eusebio’s charges remain winless in group A and head into their final qualifier without a victory to their name.
Currently at the bottom of their group, Sao Tome have been one of the worst-performing sides during the 2023 Afcon qualifying campaign and conceded a total of 20 goals in five matches.
Also, following a 5-1 defeat in their opening qualifier, Sao Tome then suffered a mammoth 10-0 loss against Nigeria on home soil, as Osimhen netted four times against the Falcons.
That said, after naming his squad for the upcoming qualifier, Eusebio reacted to the criticism he received after assembling a team that had no players from the Sao Tome domestic league.
“This call is already thinking about the World Cup qualifying games that start in November,” Eusebio said.
“We have to take into account that, at this time, we will not have championships in the country and the players will be in vacation mode.”
