Having dimmed the Lone Star in Lagos, Gernot Rohr’s men will be out to pick up maximum points against the Blue Sharks away from home
Nigeria continue their journey towards qualifying for the 2022 Fifa World Cup Qatar with an away fixture versus Cape Verde on Tuesday.
The Super Eagles commenced their campaign on a winning note – defeating Liberia 2-0 at the Teslim Balogun Stadium on Friday – with Kelechi Iheanacho bagging a first-half brace.
Victory over the Blue Sharks will brighten the three-time African champions’ ambition of qualifying for a seventh World Cup, in Qatar next year.
Bubista’s team, on their part, began their race for a maiden appearance with an impressive 1-1 away draw against the Central African Republic.
Despite taking a 36th minute lead through Julio Tavares inside Stade de la Reunification, they let their hosts restore parity courtesy of Tresor Toropite's effort seven minutes before the hour mark.
Although this is the first time the two teams would be meeting in a competitive match, Cape Verde would be hoping to make home ground advantage count against the West Africans who are without their Premier League stars.
| Game | Cape Verde vs Nigeria |
| Date | Tuesday, September 7 |
| Time | 17:00 WAT |
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
For Nigerian readers, get your fix on the latest football on TV here! For those across the globe, that is also the place to be.
Also, the game can be watched live on TV through AIT and it can be streamed online courtesy of the NFF streaming platform.
| Nigeria TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| AIT, NTA | Hesgoal.com |
| UK & US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| N/A | N/A |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Nigeria squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Uzoho; Akpeyi; Okoye |
| Defenders | Awaziem, Omeruo, Balogun, Troost-Ekong, Aina, Shehu; Sanusi |
| Midfielders | Etebo, Ndidi, Ayodele-Aribo |
| Forwards | Musa, Iwobi, Kalu, Osimhen, Iheanacho, Simon, Onuachu |
Potential Nigeria XI: Okoye, Omeruo, Awaziem, Shehu, Sanusi, Bonke, Michael, Kalu, Simon, Onyekuru, Osimhen
| Position | Cape Verde squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Vozinha, Rosa, Silva |
| Defenders | Furtado, C. Tavares, D. Tavares, Brito, Stopira, Ponck, Lopes, Fonseca, Pires |
| Midfielders | Pina, Soares, Arcanko, Monteiro, Santos, Tavares, Andrade |
| Forwards | Rodrigues, Mendes, Lopes, Furtado, Goncalves, Gomes, J. Tavarez |
Potential Cape Verde XI: Vozinha, Stopira, Lopes, Furtado, Ponck, Tavares, Andrade, Furtado, Santos, Mendes, J. Tavares
Betting & Match Odds
Nigeria are 2.30 favourites to win with Betking. Cape Verde's chances of winning are rated at 3.40 and a draw is available at 2.85
Match Preview
This is the second time Nigeria and Cape Verde will be meeting at international level.
En route to participating in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations – where they emerged as African kings – the Super Eagles played out a 0-0 draw in a friendly match with the Blue Sharks at the Estadio Do Algarve.
Heading into this game, coach Rohr knows that there is no margin for error if they are to avoid a tortuous route to Qatar.
Although he will be without the likes of Kelechi Iheanacho, Wilfred Ndidi and William Troost-Ekong due to Covid restriction in the United Kingdom, the German tactician boasts of quality in his squad to serve as replacements.
While addressing the media, former Burkina Faso handler stated that his ‘Super Commando’ Eagles can turn the tides against a highly defensive Cape Verde side.
“They like to play quickly in the attack, they have wonderful players like Mendes, they have players in France, and they have offensive players,” he said.
“They like to set up with three at the back and we know they like to defend, but we have our idea, and we have our tactics to score goals and win the game.
“I know it won’t be easy with our situation, but we are a super commando, and we have to show our fighting spirit.”