Africa Football Discussion || Current Topic: Worldcup qualifiers - CAF.

[SatoPrincess]

One of the beauty of such a final as tonight is when it ends with a penalty kick, after two full halves have been successfully played and yet both team still playing draw, but in the case of this final AFCON game between Ivory Coast vs Nigeria, I won't buy the idea the Super Eagles letting tonight's game linger til penalty kick, as you never can tell, any single mistake you are already off the track, and as such, I just wish the Super Eagles of Nigeria don't fall our hands, as all hope is strictly on this game starting from one and a half hour from now.

I don’t enjoy games ending in penalty shootout because of the tension it brings. Already a couple of persons have been reported dead while watching the game against South Africa a few days ago. The last thing anyone wants to watch is a penalty shootout. The winner of a penalty shootout is not always necessarily the best team, they could just be the lucky one to find the back of the net. I believe the Super Eagles will win this match 2 goals to nil. There will no room for extra time.

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[Spaceman1000$]

I’m so excited for the AFCON final today, Nigeria vs Ivory Coast. It’s going to be a tough one for Nigeria, coming up against the host nation. I hope Joss Poseiro will be fielding his best players in this fixture, there should be no room for mistakes. The weak links in the team should not start the game. Alex Iwobi wasn’t impressive at all in the game against South Africa, I would prefer if he is benched and Yusuf is brought in the starting lineup. Osimhen hasn’t had the goals in this tournament but I believe he’s going to score at least two goals for Nigeria against Ivory Coast.

Today’s match is going to be the most exciting match to watch since the beginning of the AFCON. Nigeria will be facing the host nation and it is going to be a tough one for them to face lots of Ivorians fans that will be coming to watch the match today in their hometown. Nigerians have played well till now even though others have seen it as a game of luck to have come this far, I believe luck still favours those who work towards achieving it. The lineup today should be the most excellent one and the Nigerian coach should have knows the best players to start with today.

Alex Iwobi is good and Yusuf is also a good player, although they play differently but they bought have their impact in the field when they’re playing, it is left for the coach to decide who befits to start the match first. Osimehn is a clinical striker and I am sure he will give the Ivorians defenders a tough time in the eighteen yard box. If he can’t score, he can make them conceive a penalty in their eighteen yard box. A talented striker he is, I expect him to be at its best form today.

I heard the host nation have mobilize their locals to fill up the stadium to cheer their players up. That's like home advantage strategy they are using there. Given the way they the host nation started this competition, I really want to commend them for coming thus far, they started on the wrong footing with so much inconsistency on their group stages but look at today they are in the finals with Nigeria. It's going to be a great game, people are all anticipating to hear the whistle for the match opening.

Tactically Nigeria's are good in defense and attack,  on the central midfield they don't really have much display there, I know they will be capitalizing on their hitman Victor osimhen to some magic upfront.

[Sexylizzy2813]

If I remember correctly, Ivory Coast finished third in their group. They also fired their coach because of the poor results in the group matches. They also lost 1-0 to Nigeria in the group match. From this point of view, it's a miracle they made it to the final. I think this might be one of the details that make football beautiful. But their opponents are one of the strongest teams in the tournament. Nigeria are my favorites in this match. I think they will beat Ivory Coast again like they did in the group stage. I think Ivory Coast's only chance will be to take this match to extra time and penalties.

Honestly the host nation was so lucky to have qualify from the group stage that many football fans thought it would be them (Ivory Coast) and Nigeria that will come out but things turn out to be different.
To me the finals has already been played in the semi final between Nigeria vs South Africa, that game was the strongest match the Super Eagles has played so far in this tournament. So what I'm saying is that we have beat the host nation ones and we're going to correct that mistake by scoring more than 1 goal in tonight's encounter because Ivory Coast don't have what it takes to be in the finals, they're not good and I know perfectly well that if the Eagles had converted their chances in their first meeting it would have been more than a goal and lets expect a goal or two from V. Osimhen in this final.

Well, I very much agree with you bud, though I am not expecting tonight's game to be an easy win for Nigeria, but I expect it to be easier than the experience we had with south Africa, I mean, man, that game was tensed, the rate at which many people viewing the match lost their lives due to high tension their hearts couldnt bear, confirmed the fact that, the match between Nigeria and South Africa was the most tensed match in all of this season's AFCON,,  while watching that game, my heart almost jumped out of my chest.

And coming back to today's game, I am not actually going to watch it, I do feel like, but for my healths sake, I will deliberately avoid watching the game, I will just follow updates on this forum and on this thread, ivory coast doesn't have what it takes to beat Nigeria, and if there is no partiality in the game, like ivory coast trying to play a home advantage kind of game, then todays game will be an easy win for Nigeria.

Nigeria vs South Africa is the most tensed match in this AFCON I must agree with you then it only means that we are champions. Things are happening because of this AFCON that some of us don't know but I believe that if you can't withstand the pressure of the game is best you avoid your TV or radio station, especially the radio station.
The host nation don't have any threat but that doesn't mean we should underrate them, all I know is that we should get our goals from a position that won't need any review by VAR because that's what have been making us end our game with only 1 to 2 goals. Let Osimhen avoid the offside traps, it will help the Eagles win a comfortable win. For us to make that happen, let our midfielders be fast in dropping the ball for Osimhen and we need someone who's going to make that number 10 role to be more active for our attackers to make things happen.
I agree with you when you said if there's no partial that's when the host nation can win but let's be rest assured that the trophy is coming to Naija. I hope that this win tonight (By the grace of God) would show how important it is to develop our league.

[SatoPrincess]

Tactically Nigeria's are good in defense and attack,  on the central midfield they don't really have much display there, I know they will be capitalizing on their hitman Victor osimhen to some magic upfront.

I’m afraid there is no solution to Nigeria’s poor midfield, what we have is a strong attack and a solid defense. I hope this can make up for the deficiencies in the midfield. Victor Osimhen will have to bring his warrior spirit in tonight’s game. He’s practically carried the whole team on his back throughout the tournament, even though he doesn’t have a lot of goals, the fact remains that all the goals the Super Eagles has is because of him. Letting his teammates take the penalties only shows his team spirit. This is an advantage, teams play better when the players understand the collective goal and are not playing for individual glory.

[Davidvictorson]

Tactically Nigeria's are good in defense and attack,  on the central midfield they don't really have much display there, I know they will be capitalizing on their hitman Victor osimhen to some magic upfront.

Nigeria will win this the match. My head tells me that the officiating team may try to be biased against the super eagles but we will emerge victorious. We are going to have just one hero that will save the day, but it will be team work. For the Ivorians, I know that they are damn scared and they are right. The outcome of the match metaphorically speaking may decide how things go for our dearest country. I wish the boys well. My hope is that the boys who shined in the tournament will find better clubs out there to horn their skills and be the best they can be.

[Sim_card]

Tactically Nigeria's are good in defense and attack,  on the central midfield they don't really have much display there, I know they will be capitalizing on their hitman Victor osimhen to some magic upfront.

Nigeria will win this the match. My head tells me that the officiating team may try to be biased against the super eagles but we will emerge victorious. We are going to have just one hero that will save the day, but it will be team work. For the Ivorians, I know that they are damn scared and they are right. The outcome of the match metaphorically speaking may decide how things go for our dearest country. I wish the boys well. My hope is that the boys who shined in the tournament will find better clubs out there to horn their skills and be the best they can be.

Nigeria Super Eagle captain Ekong has opened the score line with an excellent header after he received a cross on the 35the minutes of the game. Ivory Coast has been playing and winning possession of the game in dominance. They even lost good opportunities that Nwabali deprived one of their ball from entering the goal post. Nigeria are not playing too serious in this match, but they are playing with experience, which has brought a goal for them. Ivory Coast is always finding it difficult to score goals. I will say that they are not the lucky type. The match is in favor of Nigeria has 1-0

[Rruchi man]

Tactically Nigeria's are good in defense and attack,  on the central midfield they don't really have much display there, I know they will be capitalizing on their hitman Victor osimhen to some magic upfront.

Nigeria will win this the match. My head tells me that the officiating team may try to be biased against the super eagles but we will emerge victorious.

We are already seeing some signs of bias in the game. The official blowing for every tackle and not giving any cards to the Ivorians. The Ivorians have had the most of the possession and also a very good chance to beat Nwabali, but Nwabali saved the ball.

Ekong puts us ahead with a goal to give us the advantage, a very goal to calm the nerves of the players against this very attacking Ivory Coast team. A second goal in this first half will be reassuring to Nigeria who we expect to win this game.

[Iroh]

Nigeria will win this the match. My head tells me that the officiating team may try to be biased against the super eagles but we will emerge victorious. We are going to have just one hero that will save the day, but it will be team work. For the Ivorians, I know that they are damn scared and they are right. The outcome of the match metaphorically speaking may decide how things go for our dearest country. I wish the boys well. My hope is that the boys who shined in the tournament will find better clubs out there to horn their skills and be the best they can be.

I too think Nigeria would win the game. I had the thought immediately they emerged victorious in the game against South Africa. Few minutes till the half time and so far, they haven’t been playing so well looking at the match stats, but that’s irrelevant(for now) as they’ve managed to score a goal and get ahead in the match.
Hopefully, we’ll see more goals from Nigeria in the second half to solidify their lead and help the team cruise to victory. Wouldn’t it be something to win the title while playing against the host nation?  

About the referee being biased in his rulings, I haven’t really seen anything that would make me doubt his fairness in his decisions.  

[Smartvirus]

I too think Nigeria would win the game. I had the thought immediately they emerged victorious in the game against South Africa. Few minutes till the half time and so far, they haven’t been playing so well looking at the match stats, but that’s irrelevant as they’ve managed to score a goal and get ahead in the match.

I didn’t think, I believed it. I just didn’t see CIV by any chance beating football giants like Africa. Though, there story might be beautiful, being the host, qualifying as best losers of the group stage and managing it to the finals, they have more than enough reason to want and hope to win this one but, against a team like Nigeria, they’ve got to bring there best game on.
Nigeria have been seating back all game like they do most of there games, just absorbing the pressure from CIV and ready to utilize a best opportunity when it this created itself and then very first set piece have given just the needed result to go on the offensive. CIV would feel the pressure of Nigeria in the second half.

[Hyphen(-)]

We are already seeing some signs of bias in the game. The official blowing for every tackle and not giving any cards to the Ivorians. The Ivorians have had the most of the possession and also a very good chance to beat Nwabali, but Nwabali saved the ball.

Ekong puts us ahead with a goal to give us the advantage, a very goal to calm the nerves of the players against this very attacking Ivory Coast team. A second goal in this first half will be reassuring to Nigeria who we expect to win this game.

The official are trying to their job by given some advantage to the host country Ivory Coast, but the Super Eagles defenders are solid and are not allowing any chance despite the pressure from the Ivorian attackers.

The first half of the match was very interesting to watch, the Super Eagles of Nigeria are ahead with one goal from the team captain Trust Ekong; this has given Nigerians a great hope of winning the title because winning first is very important because with the way Nigerian defenders are focus, I am expecting them to be able to withstand the pressure and add more goals before the final whistle.

[Stable090]

I too think Nigeria would win the game. I had the thought immediately they emerged victorious in the game against South Africa. Few minutes till the half time and so far, they haven’t been playing so well looking at the match stats, but that’s irrelevant as they’ve managed to score a goal and get ahead in the match.

The first half of the match has just ended, and the two countries performed well in the first half of the match. The super eagles have been able to secure one goal in the first half of the match. I think the super eagles should be able to win today's match. The super eagles will do everything possible to maintain their current lead, and they have a strong defense and a very good goalkeeper, which can make that possible for them. Let’s see how the second half of the match goes, but the Super Eagles are already ahead of Ivory Coast with one goal, which they might be able to protect till the end of the match.

[GiftedMAN]

Tactically Nigeria's are good in defense and attack,  on the central midfield they don't really have much display there, I know they will be capitalizing on their hitman Victor osimhen to some magic upfront.

Nigeria will win this the match. My head tells me that the officiating team may try to be biased against the super eagles but we will emerge victorious.

We are already seeing some signs of bias in the game. The official blowing for every tackle and not giving any cards to the Ivorians. The Ivorians have had the most of the possession and also a very good chance to beat Nwabali, but Nwabali saved the ball.

Ekong puts us ahead with a goal to give us the advantage, a very goal to calm the nerves of the players against this very attacking Ivory Coast team. A second goal in this first half will be reassuring to Nigeria who we expect to win this game.

Yes I agree with you, the referee is not favouring Nigeria in this game as he has made some unacceptable decisions which is clearly wrong. As expected the host nation is doing a great work but they failed to convert their chances to stay ahead as Nigeria used their first opportunity to get a goal through a wonder header by the captain of the team Ekong. It's half time already so we are expecting a better performance and a mini war from the host nation, one more observation, the Nigerian team needs to be very careful in their tackles cause the referee is really against them tonight.

[SatoPrincess]

Even though Nigeria is leading, the Ivorians have the better stats in the first half. I expected the Super Eagles to do better, they look clueless when they are with the ball and they worries me. When they have the ball, they launch to find Lookman or Victor Osimhen. No passes whatsoever. I don’t think this strategy is the best.

Yes I agree with you, the referee is not favouring Nigeria in this game as he has made some unacceptable decisions which is clearly wrong.

Let’s be positive guys. In my opinion, I think the referee should have given a yellow card for that foul, even the commentators were surprised that the Ivorian player got away with it. I understand that officiating such an important game is not a easy job and the officials are careful not to start giving cards at the beginning of the game.

[Ndabagi01]

I too think Nigeria would win the game. I had the thought immediately they emerged victorious in the game against South Africa. Few minutes till the half time and so far, they haven’t been playing so well looking at the match stats, but that’s irrelevant(for now) as they’ve managed to score a goal and get ahead in the match.
Hopefully, we’ll see more goals from Nigeria in the second half to solidify their lead and help the team cruise to victory. Wouldn’t it be something to win the title while playing against the host nation?  

There is nothing wrong with the host nation losing in the final; I do not believe this will be the first time this has happened in football. So far, the Nigerian players have managed to withstand Ivorian pressure. And when the opportunity arose, they had to seize it. The Nigerian captain scored a brilliant header to give his team the lead at the end of the first half. I believe there will be more goals in this match, and the Nigerian defence is so strong that the Ivorians have yet to break through.

About the referee being biased in his rulings, I haven’t really seen anything that would make me doubt his fairness in his decisions.  

It is normal to see unfairness judgements from referees, especially when playing against an home country. I don't think the game will be fair moving forward, but Nigeria can still win. I just don't like how the game is becoming more intense, with both teams displaying anger.

[KingsDen]

AFCON FINALS: NIGERIA 1 : 0 IVORY COAST HT
It was really a fantastic and warm finals tonight as the Ivorians are in their good numbers and occupied the whole pitch. There fans were supposed to intimidate the Nigerian super eagles but it seems that there intimidation didn't work. Although the Ivory coast National team played a way better than the Nigerian Super Eagles in terms of ball possession, number of attempts and all round. Many Nigerians were expecting the Nigerian super eagles to man up with the Ivorians and contest the football but the Nigerian super eagles decided to be more reserved. I think it is the tactics of the coach "Defend and wait for an opportunity to exploit".

The Ivory coast team needed to win this AFCON for a few reasons;

• They are the host  
• Their process of qualifying from the group matches was dramatic  

However, the Nigerian Super Eagles have put much efforts and determinations in this match and they have tried to lead the first half with. A goal. So, being champions today will not be a surprise or an undeserved feat. let's see what the second half has for us

[Sexylizzy2813]

This first half I'll give it to Ivory Coast despite the Super Eagles winning 1-0, I enjoyed how we absorbed the pressure and still try to counter the host nation. I'd like it if the Eagles try as much as they can to endure every tackle and also keep their anger in check, because the odds are against us and we should play without minding the ref, I think the ref is waiting for that opportunity to give the host a chance to get something.
I think we're doing much of the defending than attacking that's why the host nation are having more of the ball and after we scored they started panicking and I would like our coach to bring in Moses Simon to drag the opposition into their own half, just as Osimhen is doing and we can get another goal and even more in this encounter.

[AYOBA]

Nigeria will win this the match. My head tells me that the officiating team may try to be biased against the super eagles but we will emerge victorious. We are going to have just one hero that will save the day, but it will be team work. For the Ivorians, I know that they are damn scared and they are right. The outcome of the match metaphorically speaking may decide how things go for our dearest country. I wish the boys well. My hope is that the boys who shined in the tournament will find better clubs out there to horn their skills and be the best they can be.

I too think Nigeria would win the game. I had the thought immediately they emerged victorious in the game against South Africa. Few minutes till the half time and so far, they haven’t been playing so well looking at the match stats, but that’s irrelevant(for now) as they’ve managed to score a goal and get ahead in the match.
Hopefully, we’ll see more goals from Nigeria in the second half to solidify their lead and help the team cruise to victory. Wouldn’t it be something to win the title while playing against the host nation?  

About the referee being biased in his rulings, I haven’t really seen anything that would make me doubt his fairness in his decisions.  

I am confident that Nigeria will win this game, despite the fact that their performance in the first half was mediocre; nonetheless, Ekong gave it his all and scored one goal, which was excellent work. Because today's encounter was not easy, the Avory Coast tried to put Nigeria under a lot of pressure in the first half, but I am confident that the second half would be better.
Because I believe they will improve their performance so that they can dominate more goals and finish the match with complete satisfaction.

[Dzwaafu11]

One of the beauty of such a final as tonight is when it ends with a penalty kick, after two full halves have been successfully played and yet both team still playing draw, but in the case of this final AFCON game between Ivory Coast vs Nigeria, I won't buy the idea the Super Eagles letting tonight's game linger til penalty kick, as you never can tell, any single mistake you are already off the track, and as such, I just wish the Super Eagles of Nigeria don't fall our hands, as all hope is strictly on this game starting from one and a half hour from now.

I don’t enjoy games ending in penalty shootout because of the tension it brings. Already a couple of persons have been reported dead while watching the game against South Africa a few days ago. The last thing anyone wants to watch is a penalty shootout. The winner of a penalty shootout is not always necessarily the best team, they could just be the lucky one to find the back of the net. I believe the Super Eagles will win this match 2 goals to nil. There will no room for extra time.

The game is really moving as we Nigerians want, because the Super Eagles are leading with one goal, and indeed, they are doing very well. However, these games will not end in a penalty shootout because the way the super eagles have already dominated these matches is really interesting, and hopefully I believe they will score more goals in the second half. However, 2 to 3 people reported death in Nigeria, which is why I also don't want these games to end that way, and even though there is not always an issue of ead penalty shootouts, the best teams usually fail while playing penalty, and obviously the super eagles are far better than the Ivory Coast in the match, so let's wait for the second half.

And I  guarantee that we are going to win the final today even though there are still more than 45 minutes to play, so hopefully we will get the victory, so let us hope and pray for the Nigerian team, which is the Super Eagles, to get the cup home tonight.

[Fivestar4everMVP]

This first half I'll give it to Ivory Coast despite the Super Eagles winning 1-0, I enjoyed how we absorbed the pressure and still try to counter the host nation. I'd like it if the Eagles try as much as they can to endure every tackle and also keep their anger in check, because the odds are against us and we should play without minding the ref, I think the ref is waiting for that opportunity to give the host a chance to get something.
I think we're doing much of the defending than attacking that's why the host nation are having more of the ball and after we scored they started panicking and I would like our coach to bring in Moses Simon to drag the opposition into their own half, just as Osimhen is doing and we can get another goal and even more in this encounter.

I am not watching the match, but from what you've said, I sense the ref is trying to do the same thing they did to the super eagles in our match against south Africa in the semi finals, where the red waited and awarded a penalty to south Africa at the slightest foul committed by a super eagles player.
One thing I am actually certain about is that, Nigeria will win the game, regardless of what the ref does, as long as there is no partiality in the game, I trust that Nigeria will win, and we should as well know that stats don't matter much, what we want is goals, let ivory coast have the most ball possessions, let them have the most shots on target, let the have the most passes, but let Nigeria have the most goals, this is what I want, and I believe this is what every Nigerians want.

Fingers crossed and waiting eagerly to celebrate Nigeria's win tonight.

[CryptoHeadlineNews]

One of the beauty of such a final as tonight is when it ends with a penalty kick, after two full halves have been successfully played and yet both team still playing draw, but in the case of this final AFCON game between Ivory Coast vs Nigeria, I won't buy the idea the Super Eagles letting tonight's game linger til penalty kick, as you never can tell, any single mistake you are already off the track, and as such, I just wish the Super Eagles of Nigeria don't fall our hands, as all hope is strictly on this game starting from one and a half hour from now.

I don’t enjoy games ending in penalty shootout because of the tension it brings. Already a couple of persons have been reported dead while watching the game against South Africa a few days ago. The last thing anyone wants to watch is a penalty shootout. The winner of a penalty shootout is not always necessarily the best team, they could just be the lucky one to find the back of the net. I believe the Super Eagles will win this match 2 goals to nil. There will no room for extra time.

Yes, I'm aware of the tragic incidence which took place during AFCON semi final between South Africa and Nigeria, how a corp member and 4 others lost their lives due to the shock of the penalty kick, and as such I pray  May their gentle soul rest in peace., and I hope we never experience any death in today's final match against Ivory Coast, as it will be really massive and more tragic than the previous. But with God, I can see the Super eagles of Nigeria playing an awesome game as the fame is already in favour of Nigeria with 1 goal to nil


Link: https://punchng.com/corps-member-dies-watching-super-eagles-afcon-semi-finals-penalty-shootout/