EAGLE EYE This week, we serve a strong appeal to Nigerian football fans and their supporters ahead of the Super Eagles’ next match at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
It will be a round of 16 clash with The Mambas of Mozambique at 8pm in Complexe Sportif de Fès, Morocco, and many Nigerians (as well as football buffs the world over) have already given victory to the Super Eagles before the game even begins.
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Pundits, bet stakers and gamblers are casting their lots hastily, without hesitation, because they believe this is one game that can have a single conclusion – Victory for Nigeria by any margin!
That conclusion is not based only on statistics from FIFA’s monthly rankings and the fact that Nigeria’s squad is star-studded to the hilt. There are also three topical indices to support the verdict:
1. The Super Eagles are one of only two teams that won all three matches in the group stage of AFCON 2025.
2. Their huge haul of eight goals scored across the three group games was the highest by any team in the ongoing tournament.
3. Nigeria has won four of five previous fixtures between both teams, and Mozambique won only one.
So, the logical verdict to arrive at from all these points simply has to be that Mozambique will bite the dust on Monday. How can a team that lost their last group match and qualified with a third placed consolation slot pip an in-form squad backed by all sensible pillars for victory?
Well, my simple answer to that poser is: It is very, very possible for Mozambique to win! Yes, it is quite possible that a team without a dog’s chance turns up to pull off a remarkable shock that would resonate in the history books for years to come.
In this regard, four major points should be taken into consideration:
1. The Super Eagles usually disappoint when all expectations are on them to excel; but they perform best when they are written off.
2. The Super Eagles had the same 100% first round scorecard at AFCON 2021 in Cameroon but lost their round of 16 fixture 1-0 to Tunisia, who reached that stage by the whiskers.
3. Nigeria’a last clash with Mozambique was an international friendly in Lisbon, Portugal that was not smooth sailing, as the Super Eagles had to fight tooth and nail to win 3-2.
4. The Eagles struggled against them during a 2010 World Cup qualifier in Abuja and it took a last second kamikaze effort by Victor Obinna Nsofor to give Nigeria a slim 1-0 win.
All these points should warn the discerning mind that Monday’s game will not be a stroll in the park. Therefore, rather than give a straightforward declaration of victory for the Super Eagles, we should hand Eric Chelle and his wards a wake-up call … or quickly put across to them a deeply solemn appeal: ‘Please don’t underrate Mozambique; please don’t take these Mambas for granted.’
Yes, I saw how Cameroon had to did deep in order to pull the chestnut out of the fire against Mozambique during their last group game on Wednesday. Before then, I saw how Mozambique shocked Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Les Azingo of Gabon to get their first ever win in an AFCON match.
This means The Mambas are in the ascendancy and they are still rising vibrantly, while our team appears to be gliding in vainglorious satisfaction.
However, I further warn that we are reposing our self-belief on statistics that rate us as the best attacking team of the group stage at Maroc 2025, but we have forgotten five key facts:
1. We failed to keep a clean sheet in all three group fixtures.
2. Our defence is not solid at all, which was highlighted in how Uganda scored against us even after getting a red card
3. Our goalkeepers are not among the best to depend on when the going gets really tough ( as it is now bound to be in the knock-out stage).
4. Our attackers have failed to covert more chances th…ny Stadium in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivorie
