As preparations get hot for the 2018 FIFA World
Cup, the Super Eagles have been placed in a
really tough group.
The Super Eagles will be facing tough opponents
in the fight for a place in the World Cup.
in the fight for a place in the World Cup.
The Super Eagles will play Zambia’s Chipolopolo,
Cameroon’s Indomitable Lions and Algeria’s
Fennecs in the final round of qualification series for
the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals.
In what is already dubbed the group of death by
pundits, the three-time African champions, who will
not play in next year’s Africa Cup of Nations in
Gabon, face a tough route to qualify for Russia
2018 given the high quality of their opponents in
the group.
The draw conducted at the Cairo Marriott Hotel put
all former African champions in the same Group B,
with reigning continental champions Cote d’Ivoire
to tackle Gabon, Mali and Morocco in Group C.
Tunisia’s Carthage Eagles head Group A that also
includes Libya, Democratic Republic of Congo and
Guinea, and Ghana’s Black Stars will do battle with
the Pharaohs of Egypt, Congo’s Red Devils and
Uganda’s Cranes in Group E. Senegal’s Teranga
Lions, which reached the World Cup quarter –
finals in its debut in 2002, head Group D that also
includes South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, Burkina
Faso’s Etalons and Cape Verde’s Blue Sharks.
“It is a tough draw, but then I have always said that
you have to beat the best to get to the World Cup.
Now we have the draw, we know how to prepare.
The preparation has to start right now and we must
make good use of every single day leading to the
kick –off of the series.
“The other pools are tough as well, because for
me, you can never afford to under –rate any team
these days. Now we must quickly sort out the
issue of Head Coach and his assistants and put
every other thing in place in good time,” NFF
president Amaju Pinnick said.
Algeria knocked Nigeria out of the race to the
1982 FIFA World Cup, but Nigeria also
overpowered Algeria to qualify for the 1994 finals
in USA.
Nigeria beat Algeria 3-0 to lift her first –ever Africa
Cup of Nations title, on home soil in 1980, but the
Fennecs avenged by beating the Eagles 1-0 to also
nick their first African title, on home soil, ten years
later.
Cameroon stopped Nigeria from reaching the 1990
FIFA World Cup finals, winning 1-0 in Yaounde in a
group contest even though Nigeria won the home
leg 2-0 in Ibadan.
In Yaounde, only weeks after the death of Samuel
Okwaraji, Nigeria needed a draw to shove aside
the Lions but lost 1-0.
In a friendly in Belgium in October last year, the
Super Eagles steamrolled the Lions 3-0.
