Tension for Benin Republic as Super Eagles Land in Cotonou, Ready for Squirrels Cracker
- Super Eagles traveled by speed boat to Cotonou ahead of their match with the Squirrels
- Nigeria take in Benin in the penultimate AFCON 2021 qualifying match on Saturday, March 27
- The Super Eagles only need a point from the encounter while the host must win for a chance
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The Super Eagles arrived Benin Republic via the waterways on Friday, March 26, a day before they face the Squirrels at the Stade Charles de Gaulle, Porto-Novo.
Both teams will go head-to-head in an AFCON 2021 qualifier in their bid to reach the tournament proper which has been postponed till January next year.
The players and their officials landed in Cotonou on Friday morning after a short boat ride from Lagos.
Gernot Rohr’s men will hold a training session inside the Stade Charles de Gaulle in the evening before their encounter against the Squirrels.
Nigeria top Group L with eight points after four rounds of matches, while Benin are second with seven points.
A draw in the encounter will guarantee the Super Eagles passage to the AFCON to be hosted by Cameroon in January.
Eagles coach Gernot Rohr has stated that his side are in Benin Republic to beat the host nation when they eventually meet.
Benin Republic are yet to lose any game in their home ground in Porto Novo in 8 years, but Super Eagles handler Gernot Rohr explained that his players would get the win.
Source: Twitter
Meanwhile, Squirrels of Benin coach Michel Dussuyer has stated that his side will go all out for the maximum points.
The either of the teams must win the fixture if they ever want to stand a chance of reaching the finals in Cameroon next year.
And Benin coach is already sending strong signals to Nigeria. He said:
“We have respect for Nigeria but we also have out assets. We will approach the game with a lot of seriousness and determination.
“We know what we have to do. On Saturday our ambition is to win. It will not be an easy task but we have hopes.”
However, Legit.ng earlier reported that the Squirrels of Benin will need to watch out for Leicester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho who put up impressive displays in Super Eagles training on Thursday, March 25.
Iheanacho who scored a brace against Manchester United in the FA Cup and a hat-trick against Sheffield United last weekend replicated such form in their training session at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos.
His Leicester City teammate Wilfred Ndidi is also one of the top performers in training along with Villarreal’s winger Samuel Chukwueze.
Babajide Orevba is a digital publishing expert, an avid sports content thinker, researcher and writer. He is a graduate of Guidance and Counselling, having bagged his B.SC (ED) from the Ekiti State University. He can be reached on Twitter @JideOrevba
Source: Legit.ng
