U-20 AFCON Preview: Nigeria Vs Egypt
The Flying Eagles of Nigeria will be seeking to secure its first points of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) when they face hosts Egypt on Wednesday by 6pm (Nigerian time), at the Cairo International Stadium in Cairo Egypt.
Nigeria suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat against the Junior Teranga Lions of Senegal in their first match at the Cairo International Stadium on Sunday, but still have a chance to qualify.
Seven-time champions Nigeria will be looking to bounce back to secure its first win in the competition and are confident of silencing the home fans and get their campaign on track when they battle the Egyptians
“We prepared very well to face the Egyptian national team,” Flying Eagles coach Ladan Bosso said at his pre-match press conference. “As coaches, we know how to deal with the loss and overcome it, and we are ready for the Egypt match.”
“The fans are important, but the fans do not win the matches. We saw during the World Cup Qatar were playing at home, but they were unable to advance to the next round.”
“We lost to Senegal, although we were the best. But they were able to take advantage of the opportunities and succeeded in resolving the match in their favour,” Bosso added.
The Young Pharaohs of Egypt
Egypt boss Mahmoud Gaber says the hosts are ready and motivated to face Nigeria in the penultimate match in Group A of the ongoing U-20 Africa Cup of Nations on Wednesday.
The hosts were held to a frustrating goalless stalemate by the resolute Mozambique in the opening match of the 23rd edition of the U-20 AFCON.
They dominated large parts of the match at the Cairo International stadium, but failed to deliver in front of their home fans in the capital.
“We started working right after the Mozambique game,” Gaber confirmed. “Everyone is ready and we’re very motivated to win.”
“It is possible that we will change the way we play against Nigeria. We watched the Nigeria-Senegal match and we prepared well for the match,” Gaber added.
“We suffered from a low defensive block against Mozambique, and we will not suffer from this against Nigeria due to the different way of playing.”
Head To Head
2005: 🇳🇬 2-0 🇪🇬
2007: 🇪🇬 1-1 🇳🇬
2009: 🇳🇬 2-0 🇪🇬
2013: 🇪🇬 2-0 🇳🇬
2023: 🇪🇬?-? 🇳🇬An all-time #TotalEnergiesAFCONU20 classic between Egypt and Nigeria 🔥
Who will come out on top tonight? 🤔 @EFA | @NGSuperEagles pic.twitter.com/SSe91tPaD2
— #TotalEnergiesAFCONU20 (@CAF_Online) February 22, 2023
At Under-20 level, Nigeria and Egypt have faced each other six times. Nigeria have won three (3) of the meetings, while Egypt have won two (2) with one match ending in a draw.
The last meeting was in the semi-finals of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations, with the Egyptians claiming victory after a 2-0 result.
