Super Eagles captain, William Troost-Ekong said on Thursday that Nigeria’s national team will go all out for a handsome victory over the visiting national team of Sao Tome and Principe to welcome the new Minister of Sports Development, John Owan Enoh, Completesports.com reports
Enoh assumed office a couple of weeks ago and has already been involved in matters of the three-time African champions, as he superintended a meeting with NFF bigwigs which agreed to an extension of the contract of Head Coach Jose Santos Santos.
“Yes, we have already qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire, but we want to win this match for a number of reasons,” Troost-Ekong said.
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“We have a new Minister of Sports Development who has hit the ground running. It is good to welcome him with a great win.
“We also need to sustain a winning mentality ahead of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers starting in November. So, we are not going to be taking this game as a dead-rubber or whatever people choose to call it. It is another important match as far as we are concerned.”
Nigeria currently leads the AFCON 2023 qualifiers Group A with 12 points from five games, two points ahead of second-placed Guinea Bissau, and has already qualified for the final tournament which Cote d’Ivoire will host in January 2024.
However, the top spot finish is at stake in this weekend’s final-day games. Guinea Bissau’s Djurtus host third-placed and already-eliminated Sierra Leone in Bissau, and a win will take them to 13 points.
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Victory in Uyo will take the Super Eagles to 15 points and emerge as Group A winners, no matter what result Guinea-Bissau bags in Bissau.
In their last outing at the Nest of Champions, the Super Eagles edged Benin Republic 2-1 in a 2021 AFCON qualifier on 13th November 2019. The Cheetahs scored first before Victor Osimhen and Samuel Kalu’s goals earned Nigeria the victory.
Osimhen, who leads the AFCON 2023 qualifying campaign scorers’ sheet with seven goals, is among the 23 players already sweating it out in the Akwa Ibom State capital ahead of Sunday’s match and will relish the opportunity to increase the gap between him and other contenders for the campaign’s top scorer’s status.
The Super Eagles played all their home matches in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification series and the 2019 AFCON qualification series in Uyo, and were successful in both campaigns.
By Richard Jideaka, Abuja
