Nigeria will meet Mozambique for the sixth time at the senior level as both teams prepare for a fierce battle in one of the Round of 16 matches of the ongoing 35th Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco.
The match will take place at the Complexe Sportif de Fès, which has hosted Nigeria, a three-time African champion, throughout their Group C campaign. The game is set to kick off at 8 PM on Monday, January 5th.
Nigeria dominated their group stage, winning all three matches, scoring eight goals and conceding four. Ademola Lookman and Raphael Onyedika each netted twice, while Semi Ajayi, Victor Osimhen, Wilfred Ndidi, and Paul Onuachu contributed the remaining goals.
Mozambique started their tournament with a loss to defending champions Côte d’Ivoire but bounced back to defeat Gabon before suffering a 1-2 defeat against Cameroon’s Indomitable Lions on Wednesday evening.
The upcoming match is anticipated to be thrilling, as the young Mambas have shown they can compete fiercely against top teams and pull off surprises when needed.
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In their five previous encounters, Nigeria has won four times, including their only AFCON match in January 2010 in Lubango, Angola, where the Eagles triumphed 3-0. Nigeria also won a friendly in Maputo in August 1999 by a narrow margin and another in Portugal in October 2023 with a score of 3-2. The FIFA World Cup qualifying matches ended in a 0-0 draw in Maputo and a 1-0 win for Nigeria in Abuja, where Obinna Nsofor scored in stoppage time to keep Nigeria’s World Cup hopes alive.
All the AFCON 2025 Round of 16 Matches are:
– Mali vs. Tunisia
– Morocco vs. Tanzania
– Algeria vs. DR Congo
– Egypt vs. Benin
– Senegal vs. Sudan
– Nigeria vs. Mozambique
– South Africa vs. Cameroon
– Burkina Faso vs. Côte d’Ivoire
Super Eagles, Mambas encounters In History are:
– August 17, 1999: Mozambique 0-1 Nigeria (International Friendly: Maputo)
– March 29, 2009: Mozambique 0-0 Nigeria (WCQ: Maputo)
– October 11, 2009: Nigeria 1-0 Mozambique (WCQ: Abuja)
– January 20, 2010: Mozambique 0-3 Nigeria (AFCON: Lubango, Angola)
– October 16, 2023: Mozambique 2-3 Nigeria (International Friendly: Lisbon).
