The Super Eagles of Nigeria have been drawn in the same group with AFCON 2023 hosts Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau npflupdates.com reports.
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The 2023 AFCON draw was Thursday held in Ivory Coast, and qualified countries have been placed in their various separate groups ahead of the tournament in January.
The 34th edition of the biennial tournament will hold between 13 January and 11 February 2024.
Some of the important things supporters of the Super Eagles will have to bear in mind going into the tournament are the following:
First, the Super Eagles will come up against host nation Ivory Coast in what looked like a reverse fixture of their clash in 2013. And in the 2013 edition of the tournament, Nigeria won Ivory Coast 2:1, thanks to a second-half winner from Sunday Mba. So, Ivory Coast will hope to avenge their loss to the Super Eagles at the AFCON in South Africa
Secondly, Nigeria will be playing all their group games at the Alassane Ouattara stadium Abidjan. The Alassane Ouattara Stadium, is also known as the Olympic Stadium of Ebimpé(and formerly as the National Stadium of the Ivory Coast). It is a multi-purpose stadium in Ebimpé and Anyama, in northern Abidjan.
It opened in 2020, and hosts major football matches including the home matches of the Ivory Coast senior men’s national football team.
The stadium is owned and controlled by the Federal Government of Ivory Coast. And with a 60,000 capacity, is the largest stadium in Ivory Coast. And one of the most modern stadiums in Africa.
Finally, Nigeria will hope to dismantle it’s AFCON qualifier opponent Guinea-Bissau. Guinea-Bissau had beaten Nigeria in Abuja during the first leg of its qualifier match. The West African country, scored via a lone goal from Mama Balde, who capitalized on an error between defenders Calvin Bassey and Kevin Akpoguma.
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Nigeria will now hope to win its fourth title when they travel to Ivory Coast next year. Nigeria’s first match is against Equatorial Guinea, a match they must win to stand a chance of going through to the knockout stages.
