Nigeria head into the latest round of African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers with some of the hottest talent in European football.
Jose Peseiro has an embarrassment of riches available to him in in attack, particularly with two of the top three scorers in the 2022/23 Serie A leading the way.
Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman have been in fine form this season, with the experienced Kelechi Iheanacho and Ahmed Musa providing competent competition. The fact English Premier League strikers Taiwo Awoniyi and Emmanuel Dennis, both of Nottingham Forest, miss out shows the strength of depth up front the Super Eagles possess.
Nigeria are in action twice over the next week, both against Guinea-Bissau in the AFCON 2023 Group A qualification tournament. The Super Eagles are currently two from two in Group A, beating Sierra Leone 2-1 and Sao Tome and Principe 10-0, back in June. The matches against Guinea-Bissau are crucial encounters, with Nigeria’s opponents currently second with four points, in a group of four where the top two qualify.
We take a look at the four key players of the Nigeria squad going into the latest round of fixtures.
Calvin Bassey
The Ajax defender has been a Super Eagles regular since breaking into the Rangers team and excelling last season. That led to a £20m move to the Dutch champions. The defender, who plays either centre-back or left-back, has had an indifferent start to life in Holland but Nigeria will hope he can produce similar displays that helped Rangers reach the 2021/22 UEFA Europa League Final.
Alex Iwobi
In a disappointing season for Everton, Iwobi has been one of the rare shining lights. The 26-year old was deployed in central midfield for the majority of the season, before moving to the left and right since Sean Dyche took over. His work rate has been key this season but he can be used in a more creative role for the Super Eagles, which could allow him to add to his tally of 10 goals for his country.
Ademola Lookman
The English-born Nigerian, who only made his international debut last March, has been a revelation since joining Atalanta last summer. The 25-year-old has netted 12 times for the Italian outfit in 26 Serie A appearances, easily his most productive season in professional football. Often playing as a second striker, his creativity should prove a perfect foil for Osimhen and these two should be the two attackers Nigeria build their team around going forward.
Victor Osimhen
Osimhen is the new superstar of Nigerian football. His goalscoring record has been world-class so far this season, scoring 21 times in Serie A for leaders Napoli. He has netted 25 goals in 29 appearances in all competitions with no signs of stopping. The 24-year-old is the joint second-highest scorer in Europe’s top five leagues so far this season, and one of the hottest strikers on the planet. With all the attributes needed to be a legend for the Super Eagles, you’d be a brave man to bet against him adding to his 15 goals for Nigeria, in this international window.
Nigeria are currently 1.30 to win on Friday, will you back them at Bet9ja?
