NFF President Expects Super Eagles To Win 2023 AFCON

The President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Ibrahim Gusau has stressed that the Super Eagles would win the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The Super Eagles were among the first side to qualify for the 34th edition of AFCON which is scheduled to commence on January 11, 2024.

Interestingly, the Super Eagles are in Group A alongside the hosts of the 2023 AFCON. The group also features Guinea Bissau and Equatorial Guinea.

The Super Eagles’ first opponent in their pursuit of a fourth AFCON will be Equatorial Guinea on January 14. On January 18, the Super Eagles would play one of the biggest group stage games of the tournament when they take on the hosts at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium in Abidjan, which has 60,000 seats.

When Ivory Coast’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Kalilou Traore, Gusau, visited the NFF Secretariat in Abuja, the NFF president commanded the country for the efforts the country has put in to organize one of the best editions of AFCON.

Gusau recalls that the last time Ivory Coast hosted the AFCON in 1984, the Super Eagles went as far as the final of the tournament and finished second. Hence, he is expecting the Nigerian team to take it a step further in the forthcoming edition.

The NFF president said: “I have been receiving regular briefings on the preparations from the President of Ivory Coast Football Federation, Yacine Idriss Diallo, who is a personal friend. I am aware that the Government of Ivory Coast has really invested in stadia and general infrastructure to make the AFCON a success and a huge spectacle.

“Our two teams (Super Eagles and Elephants) are in the same group at the finals, and it would be a very interesting game when we play on January 18. We know the whole of Africa and even the world will be focused on Ivory Coast before, during, and after the AFCON, and our team will be ready to do its best. When Ivory Coast hosted the AFCON in 1984, our Eagles finished second. This time, we will work very hard to emerge as champions.”