African Football Discussion Thread Current Topic: 👉 AFCON 2025/2026

[mandown]

Benin's World Cup dreams are over. Osimhen scored three goals, and Nigeria is currently leading 3-0.
Benin only needs a miracle to qualify for the World Cup.
South Africa scored twice in the first half to make it 2-0 and secure their World Cup qualification.
Nigeria's poor run has been ended by two wins in their last two matches.
Osimhen has proven to be a force for his team.

There's no match broadcast in my country, so I'm following the match on a betting site.
 Benin National Team controlled the ball but couldn't find any effective scoring opportunities.
Osimhen scored three goals and is aiming for more.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say Osimhen put in a fantastic performance today.
Benin competed well in this group, but the quality of their squad wasn't enough

[uche6215]

Not picking full points against Zimbabwe and Rwanda was our downfall. While other teams were beating these teams with good goal margin, we were settling with last minute draws. Another World Cup without the self acclaimed Giant of Africa. Lol

I do not really understand what you mean because if we win with at least 2 goals, we have automatically qualified for world cup. Or is there any information that I am not getting right? We are the second on the table now as we are still leading with 2 goals. Yes, I understand that our team really f**k up but we are now praising our team because the situation has changed.

Wow!
Nigerian team has nailed it.
3 goals already.

End of discussion.

I think South Africa has to lose their game before Nigeria can qualify in the World Cup and now that South Africa is winning with 2-0 against Rwanda, I don't think Nigeria will qualify in this World Cup. This is what they would been playing from the onset, but they were not doing well, and it is in the dying minutes that they are playing good.

[Mayor of ogba]

Benin Republic is now the third on the list.

Nigeria and South Africa will qualify.

Or am I wrong?

Nigeria is leading Benin Republic with 2 goal difference now. But I think we still have to play some matches before qualification. I do not know.

No, if South Africa take the full three points against Rwanda, South Africa will be the only team to qualify for the World Cup in group C, because it is only the teams that finish in first position in each of the groups in the World Cup qualifiers that are eligible to play in the World Cup, while the teams that finish second will play a playoff to book a spot in the World Cup.

[Mate2237]

It's over already the South Africans are leading 2-0 at HT and are top of the table so even if we go 10-0 against Benin it wouldn't matter. It's over.

Not picking full points against Zimbabwe and Rwanda was our downfall. While other teams were beating these teams with good goal margin, we were settling with last minute draws. Another World Cup without the self acclaimed Giant of Africa. Lol

With the way the Super Eagles were struggling in the World Cup qualifiers, I never believed the Super Eagles would win against Benin even though they were playing on their home soil, but when Victor Osimhen scored two goals for the Super Eagles, I was so happy, but my happiness was cut short when South Africa doubled their lead, because there is no way Rwanda will hold South Africa to a draw in the second half. It's over for the Super Eagles because they will finish second in their group.

Nigeria still needs to score one more goal to make it 4:0 so that they can have any hopes of making it to the playoffs zone. because as it stands now Nigeria chances of making it to the play off zone is not guaranteed as other teams will be playing tonight.



Nigeria has always used a fire brigade approach in every qualifier that we have played, and this has not helped us we always start poorly when each qualifiers starts and only wake up when it took late . I just hope that Nigeria makes it to the playoffs zone.

[Btcdeybodi]

Benin Republic is now the third on the list.

Nigeria and South Africa will qualify.

Or am I wrong?

No, you're wrong only the first place team is qualifying to the World Cup.

Then the best 4 second place teams from all the groups will qualify but we're not even among the best 4 losers. As it stands Nigeria do not have any hope.

Can you list the best 4 losers and why did you say Nigeria is not among? Remember that;

• South Africa is just 1 point ahead Nigeria
• Nigeria has higher goal difference that South Africa

So, what else does Nigerian Super Eagles need to do to be among the best 4 Losers.
You are also saying that the best 4 losers will qualify and I am hearing of playoff. Which one is obtainable. Please give verified information because I need it at this time.

4 teams have already made it as the best losers which are: Gabon (22 points), Uganda (21points), Burkina Faso (21 points) and Cameroon (19 points). After Nigeria won Benin today, they could only gather 17 points which means that the aforementioned teams are still ahead of them. The only chance Nigeria had was to emerge as the group leaders if South Africa played draw or lost against Rwanda but currently South Africa is leading Rwanda by 3:0 which means they now have 18 points and gained automatic qualification to the world cup. Only 4 best second place teams are to participate in the play-off round which means that all Nigeria's effort to qualify for the world cup has been brought to an end. It is a sad one for Nigeria as a country not to qualify for the 2026 world.

[Hewlet]

No, you're wrong only the first place team is qualifying to the World Cup.

Then the best 4 second place teams from all the groups will qualify but we're not even among the best 4 losers. As it stands Nigeria do not have any hope.

Seriously 😳

I thought 2 teams will qualify. Sorry for the misunderstanding. I understand it now. This saddens me but it is just for fun.

It's just painful to see an hatrick in a crucial game as things having no effect in our chance of qualification simply because we failed to take our chances when we had all the opportunity to do so. This is football that requires every single point to increase a teams chance of qualification and yet, we played with our chances and now  all these goals does not matter any longer.

The only take away from this game is that VO9 has proven that he's a world class striker that deserves all the applaud he's been getting. If any other person in this our squad put in half the positive effort VO9 has put in since the start of this tournament, we would have qualified before now. Such a waste of effort.

[KingsDen]

Can you list the best 4 losers and why did you say Nigeria is not among? Remember that;

• South Africa is just 1 point ahead Nigeria
• Nigeria has higher goal difference that South Africa

So, what else does Nigerian Super Eagles need to do to be among the best 4 Losers.
You are also saying that the best 4 losers will qualify and I am hearing of playoff. Which one is obtainable. Please give verified information because I need it at this time.

This is the table for the playoffs/ second placed teams and we're not even in top 5 we have only 17 points   (all the teams that finished in 2nd place ( playoff table)

Only top 4 teams will qualify from here as the best 4 losers.



Charles-Tim no worries  

Jesus!
Are you saying that according to the ranking above, just the 5 teams will be selected or you meant that all the second place teams will play qualifying match against each other.
If teams will be paired to play against each other, we will qualify. But if the arrangement above has already decided our fate, let it be. Besides, going to the world cup with the standard of the Super Eagles will only high our blood pressure.

[Africolo]

Nigeria still needs to score one more goal to make it 4:0 so that they can have any hopes of making it to the playoffs zone. because as it stands now Nigeria chances of making it to the play off zone is not guaranteed as other teams will be playing tonight.

Nigeria has always used a fire brigade approach in every qualifier that we have played, and this has not helped us we always start poorly when each qualifiers starts and only wake up when it took late . I just hope that Nigeria makes it to the playoffs zone.

It's over go and check the play off table I posted on on the previous page and read what I explained there too. It would help you understand how the game works.

Jesus!
Are you saying that according to the ranking above, just the 5 teams will be selected or you meant that all the second place teams will play qualifying match against each other.
If teams will be paired to play against each other, we will qualify. But if the arrangement above has already decided our fate, let it be. Besides, going to the world cup with the standard of the Super Eagles will only high our blood pressure.

No more games, only the Top 4 are going to the World cup as best losers.

[AYOBA]

Osihmen is on fire up front. He's shown his class twice and out Nigeria up by 2 goals. The assist for the second goal by Chukwueze is a very fine one. Nigeria dominated Benin in every angle this first half. I see they are prepared to finish second if South Africa ends up defeating Rwanda who they're leading with the same margin as Nigeria. Nigeria is waking up now in good performance. I still have a problem with the Nigerian wingers, if they can be as proactive as Osihmen up front. Nigeria would have more goals in this second half. 

What a great performance from Nigeria against Benin! This shows that Nigeria is ready to qualify for the World Cup with how their performance goes against Benin. Because what surprised me in that match is that if we look at the statistics of that game, Benin was dominating the entire ball possession, but Nigeria only had 9% ball possession, and their performance was extremely impressive, as they put in much effort and won the match with amazing goals.

Osihmen is so good; if they had two people like Osihmen in that match, I think they may have scored more than that. I hope Nigeria continues in that way so that they are able to achieve their goals in the World Cup this season.

[Adbitco]

Can you list the best 4 losers and why did you say Nigeria is not among? Remember that;

• South Africa is just 1 point ahead Nigeria
• Nigeria has higher goal difference that South Africa

So, what else does Nigerian Super Eagles need to do to be among the best 4 Losers.
You are also saying that the best 4 losers will qualify and I am hearing of playoff. Which one is obtainable. Please give verified information because I need it at this time.

This is the table for the playoffs/ second placed teams and we're not even in top 5 we have only 17 points   (all the teams that finished in 2nd place ( playoff table)

Only top 4 teams will qualify from here as the best 4 losers.



Charles-Tim no worries  

Keep calm, Nigeria has a big chance to qualify for the playoffs. Eritrea's withdrawal from the qualifiers will definitely benefit some teams and of Nigeria will be amongst them. The teams that come second in all the groups will have their points deducted. If you come second, the points deducted will be determined by how many points you gathered from the bottom team of your group. Nigeria is currently second in group C and Zimbabwe is at the bottom of their group. Nigeria got 2 points from Zimbabwe across 2 legs which is w draws. That 2 points Nigeria got from Zimbabwe will be deducted from their total points. Currently Nigeria has 17 points when you deduct 2 from that, it's going to be 15 points. Some teams that came second got maximum of 6 points from the teams bottom in their various groups, some those 6 points will be deducted, some it's 4 points. After all the deductions, Nigeria will move up the ladder and will be amongst the top 4 best placed teams for the playoffs.

[Wakate]

It is a thing of joy to tell the Nigerian team that they have done a very hood joy. It is quite impressive and I am sure that the Nigerian super eagles is ready for the next match, ready to impress her country winning this match when we all thought Nigeria is going to lose this match.
The team work was good and notable and Osimen has done well to score 3 goals for the Nigerian team to qualify which was unbelievable. The hatrick goal was amazing.

[Stormisover]

Benin's World Cup dreams are over. Osimhen scored three goals, and Nigeria is currently leading 3-0.
Benin only needs a miracle to qualify for the World Cup.
South Africa scored twice in the first half to make it 2-0 and secure their World Cup qualification.
Nigeria's poor run has been ended by two wins in their last two matches.
Osimhen has proven to be a force for his team.

There's no match broadcast in my country, so I'm following the match on a betting site.
 Benin National Team controlled the ball but couldn't find any effective scoring opportunities.
Osimhen scored three goals and is aiming for more.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say Osimhen put in a fantastic performance today.
Benin competed well in this group, but the quality of their squad wasn't enough

Exactly what everyone are expecting from Nigeria football team, like how can a team with such amazing squad always struggle to win matches and always find it very difficult to qualify for the world cup and they have star players scattered all over Europe like I don't really find it funny not at all, I'm very much impressed by Victor Osimhen the guy have a fighting spirit and he's very much eager to qualify for world cup because I can't imagine a player like him always fails to qualify for the tournament is quite embarrassing but thank God they're very much in a better position to qualify for next year world cup.

[Emjay24]

What I watched today is a different Nigerian team, a new coordinated team compared to what have been playing this qualification tournament all along. They were so coordinated, mature, passionate and courageous. Calvin Bassey is a defense magician, in fact the Nigerian defensive line was wonderful, midfield and forward were very active. I feel very deep sympathy for the Benin team. They had a shot at qualifying for their first ever world cup tournament, only for their hopes to be shattered by a last match coordinated ambush by the Nigerian team. Great performance Naija🔥🔥🔥. 4 nil isn't a joke.

[adultcrypto]

I do not really understand what you mean because if we win with at least 2 goals, we have automatically qualified for world cup. Or is there any information that I am not getting right? We are the second on the table now as we are still leading with 2 goals. Yes, I understand that our team really f**k up but we are now praising our team because the situation has changed.

Wow!
Nigerian team has nailed it.
3 goals already.

End of discussion.

I think South Africa has to lose their game before Nigeria can qualify in the World Cup and now that South Africa is winning with 2-0 against Rwanda, I don't think Nigeria will qualify in this World Cup. This is what they would been playing from the onset, but they were not doing well, and it is in the dying minutes that they are playing good.

There was no way South Africa will lose that home match to Rwanda, I did not expect it to happen and it did not happen. The Super Eagles did what they were supposed to do which was to win with a very big margin to be able to qualify for playoff. I think that is enough for us and there is even a chance we will survive there because the team have been getting better in every other match. Assuming we played the way we did today for those matches we were losing points, we would have even topped the table in that group.

[Joy_learns_crypto]

I don’t know how the best second place team in the African World Cup qualifiers will be and I don’t know if Nigeria still stands a chance but beating a Benin republic team by four is something I am proud of as a Nigerian. Benin just needed to win a qualify but got beaten heavily.
This is how Nigeria should have played from the beginning of the tournament and we would not be punching the calculators by now, again Nigeria missed Victor Osimhen in the match against South Africa because I believe he would have been the difference.

[Mayor of ogba]

It's over already the South Africans are leading 2-0 at HT and are top of the table so even if we go 10-0 against Benin it wouldn't matter. It's over.

Not picking full points against Zimbabwe and Rwanda was our downfall. While other teams were beating these teams with good goal margin, we were settling with last minute draws. Another World Cup without the self acclaimed Giant of Africa. Lol

With the way the Super Eagles were struggling in the World Cup qualifiers, I never believed the Super Eagles would win against Benin even though they were playing on their home soil, but when Victor Osimhen scored two goals for the Super Eagles, I was so happy, but my happiness was cut short when South Africa doubled their lead, because there is no way Rwanda will hold South Africa to a draw in the second half. It's over for the Super Eagles because they will finish second in their group.

Nigeria still needs to score one more goal to make it 4:0 so that they can have any hopes of making it to the playoffs zone. because as it stands now Nigeria chances of making it to the play off zone is not guaranteed as other teams will be playing tonight.



Nigeria has always used a fire brigade approach in every qualifier that we have played, and this has not helped us we always start poorly when each qualifiers starts and only wake up when it took late . I just hope that Nigeria makes it to the playoffs zone.

Even though Nigeria doesn't score another goal to win Benin Republic 4:0, they will still make it to the playoff zone because they finish second, and every team that finishes second is eligible to play a playoff. The Super Eagles are not usually serious in the beginning of each World Cup qualifier, and if they don't change their attitude towards qualifying for the World Cup, they will keep missing out on the World Cup.

[DubemIfedigbo001]

What a masterpiece of a performance by the Nigerian team. The super eagles impressed their fans on home soil by trashing the Benin team and ending their hopes of participating in the world cup tournament next year and what a way for Benin to drop from 1st to 3rd on the table. Osihmen has once again shown his quality by setting Nigeria in the right path to qualification with his hatrick while Frank Onyeka sealed their position with the volley.

Nigeria would be looking forward to partaking in the play offs come November in Morocco and with more of these performances, they're surely going to qualify.

[Chilwell]

Nigeria needs more goals before they can be qualify for the match, but now south africa has already scored 2 goals, it will be difficult for Nigeria to qualify, despite that Nigeria has already scored 2 goals by Victor Osimhen, I think more goals is coming from Nigeria side, but for Nigeria to be qualify, it lies on the performance of Rwanda, because if Rwanda draw the match and Nigeria score more than 3 goals , that means Nigeria will lead, but a situation whereby Nigeria end with 2 goals that means South africa is still leading, because by point South africa is leading and by goal aggregate, South is also leading.

All Nigerians need now is a miracle in the game between South Africa and Rwanda. The Nigerian Super Eagles are doing everything possible to score more goals. And are currently leading by three goals to nothing. But all we want now is for Rwanda to come back from two goals down to get at least a draw. We missed Victor Osimhen in the game against South Africa; we would have won that game.

Congratulation to the super Eagles, at least they have improved and I still have confidence that we will make it to the World Cup. South Africa and Rwanda are done, South Africa won the match by three goals which makes them to lead the table. Seize the super Eagles have make it to the second best placed teams, the chances of making it through is very small since our Victor Osimhen is back into action. I don't know who we will be playing against but no matter the opponent I believe we will make it to the World Cup to represent Africa together with the rest of Africa teams.

[uche6215]

Lolz... looking at the different comments here is making me laugh. Nigeria Super Eagles' Qualification is now confusing many in the thread. Nigeria qualified as the best losers in the group if only they win the second round off stage. But for now they have qualified to play the playoff zone stage. They should win the playoff games and if they are playing like this in the World Cup, There will be hope that they will go far if there will be no...

[KingsDen]

Can you list the best 4 losers and why did you say Nigeria is not among? Remember that;

• South Africa is just 1 point ahead Nigeria
• Nigeria has higher goal difference that South Africa

So, what else does Nigerian Super Eagles need to do to be among the best 4 Losers.
You are also saying that the best 4 losers will qualify and I am hearing of playoff. Which one is obtainable. Please give verified information because I need it at this time.

This is the table for the playoffs/ second placed teams and we're not even in top 5 we have only 17 points   (all the teams that finished in 2nd place ( playoff table)

Only top 4 teams will qualify from here as the best 4 losers.



Charles-Tim no worries  

Keep calm, Nigeria has a big chance to qualify for the playoffs. Eritrea's withdrawal from the qualifiers will definitely benefit some teams and of Nigeria will be amongst them. The teams that come second in all the groups will have their points deducted. If you come second, the points deducted will be determined by how many points you gathered from the bottom team of your group. Nigeria is currently second in group C and Zimbabwe is at the bottom of their group. Nigeria got 2 points from Zimbabwe across 2 legs which is w draws. That 2 points Nigeria got from Zimbabwe will be deducted from their total points. Currently Nigeria has 17 points when you deduct 2 from that, it's going to be 15 points. Some teams that came second got maximum of 6 points from the teams bottom in their various groups, some those 6 points will be deducted, some it's 4 points. After all the deductions, Nigeria will move up the ladder and will be amongst the top 4 best placed teams for the playoffs.

Again?
After Africolo has made me lose hope, Adbitco wants to give me another hope. Adbitco, even if what you said is applicable due to the withdrawal of Eritrea, it will still not favour Nigeria. Do you know that some countries in the second place gathered upto 22 points. 22 - 6 = 16 which is still above Super Eagles point. The only way it will favour us is that if those that ended with 18 points has 6 points or 4 points deducted from them.

Anyways, let me study the image above again and see if I will rekindle my hope. Atleast, I go another exciting news.