All Or Nothing For Nigeria

After a dismal second half performance against Egypt, Nigeria must do better against Benin tomorrow, to avoid being eliminated from the African Cup of Nations.

Nigeria
Shaibu Amodu is a coach under pressure, as a defeat against Benin will all but seal his fate as the manager of the Nigeria national side. After a sluggish performance against Egypt, the Super Eagles defence has to be on form against Benin, as the back four looked a nervous wreck against the Pharaohs.

On paper the group looks fairly easy on Nigeria’s behalf, and you can say it was lucky that Nigeria had to play the tournament favourites Egypt, in the first match of Group C. As many coaches say that all matches are tough, that quote could well be flown out of the window by around 7.00pm tomorrow evening, as Nigeria will surely have no trouble dispatching Michel Dussuyer side, however like results have shown earlier in the week, anybody is capable of causing an upset on African soil. Ivory Coast couldn’t finish off tournament minnows, Burkina Faso. Also Gabon‘s Daniel Cousin silenced Cameroon only two days ago. If Benin causes an upset against Nigeria tomorrow, it will make this tournament even more exciting, however for the Super Eagles, Shaibu Amodu and his squad will certainly come under fire from the African Media, and worse of all the Nigerian fans.

Hopefully Nigeria will make some drastic changes for the Benin game, as the likes of Obafemi Martins and Nwankwo Kanu, could well be in with a chance of a starting place. Martins is back to full fitness now, as an injury caused him to miss the opening game against Egypt, on the other hand the news on Martins will surely put a smile on the Nigerian’s fans faces. The likes of John Obi Mikel and Chinedu Obasi need to perform like they did against Egypt, or Nigeria could well struggle to score against a fairly poor Benin side.

A Bit About Benin
Benin were able to qualify for the African Cup of Nations, after finishing 2nd in Group D in the CAF third round of qualification. Benin’s first match of the ACON was against Mozambique, however Les Ecureuils (The Squirrels) only could manage a draw against Mart Nooij side. Benin now faces an even tougher test against Nigeria, as a win could send them top of Group C, only if Egypt slips up against The Mambas. Benin’s squad is packed full with French Ligue 1 stars, as Benin’s key player Stephane Sessegnon plays his club football for Paris St Germain. Also Dussuyer’s squad consists of Reda Johnson of Plymouth and Romuald Boco of Irish side Sligo Rovers.

Match Prediction - Nigeria 3-1 Benin   

This entry was posted on Friday, January 15th, 2010 at 2:58 pm by gavh.