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Egypt vs Benin – 2010 Africa Cup of Nations Match Preview
The defending African champions and Group C leaders Egypt will face the Squirrels of Benin at the Estadio Nacional de OMBAKA in Benguela at 16:00 GMT.
This game and the Nigeria vs Mozambique encounter will both be played simultaneously.
Yet, having already booked tickets for the next round, the Egyptians are indubitably the side with less pressure among their three other contenders in their group.
Egypt
Egypt top their table with a maximum of 6 points out of two games, and they are already assured of a place in the last 8 stage of the tournament.
They will eventually be fighting Benin with the option of controlling the future of Group C's three other contenders, based on the fact that their final group stage encounter might decide who – among their group – will join them in the quarter-finals.
They Pharaohs scored five good goals against Nigeria and Benin, and this is obviously due to the brilliant performance they have been displaying in Angola.
Moreover, what could help in the Egyptians’ next challenge against Benin is that the top seeds were able to escape any high punishment from the referee in their previous match against Mozambique in which they picked up no yellow or red cards.
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Benin looked like a dangerous team on match-day one, scaring Mozambique with a two-goal lead that was subsequently minimized to nothing.
Nevertheless, their next meeting in opposition to Nigeria was somewhat unfair, as they narrowly lost by a goal to nil, despite being the better side on the day.
They only have a single point in the standings of Group C, but everything is not over for them.
In fact, a win against Egypt on match-day three with at least a two-goal margin would mean a lot for them; they could easily steal Nigeria’s place in the knockout phase - that is if Mozambique manage to beat the Nigerians on the same day.
Of course, this doesn’t go without reminding that Benin sit in third position with (-1) as their goal difference, whereas the Mozambicans are behind with a point less in their goal difference.
In the end, Benin could rely on their two strikers in front, Muri Ogunbiyi and Razak Omotoyossi, to get them the required number of points to qualify into the tournament’s next stage.
However, even if the Squirrels only succeed in scoring one goal, then their defense would have to do well in keeping nothing but a clean sheet.
Nigeria vs Mozambique – 2010 Africa Cup of Nations Match Preview
It's Nigeria vs Mozambique at 16:00 GMT at the Estadio Nacional da Tundavala in Lubango. The tempo promises to be high as both teams are still in with a chance of making through to the quarter-finals of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola.
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Nigeria
The Super Eagles of Nigeria will play their last group stage encounter against Mozambique, aiming for a place in the knockout phase.
The Nigerians have picked up only one win out of two games; this comes as a result of their harsh 3-1 defeat to Egypt, and their lucky 1-0 win to Benin.
With 3 points in Group C, Nigeria possess the second place – 3 points behind leaders Egypt. But they unquestionably need to defeat their Mozambican opponents at the Nossa Senhora do Monte, since their dream of crossing the finals’ first round still remains a desire, rather than a reality.
A positive outcome for the Squirrels of Benin in their game against Egypt could affect the Super Eagles, should the Nigerians go down against Mozambique.
However, this would be a huge shame not only for the players but for Nigeria's head coach Shaibu Amodu as well: he would probably be sacked straight away, without any hesitation.
Sources declare that a further negative result for the West African giants would push the Nigerian Football Association to dismiss Amodu, who could possibly be replaced by the present manager of Mozambique, Mart Nooij.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria will be missing the services of their skipper Joseph Yobo (who is set to be replaced by Onyekachi Apam), while their key player Obafemi Martins could appear for his national team for the first time in the tournament, having returned from the recovering exercises which he had due to his chin injury.
Mozambique
16:00 GMT will be the time for the Mambas to make things happen.
Mozambique and Nigeria were both drawn in the same group in Round 3 of the World Cup qualification in the African zone, and over the two legs which were played, the Mozambicans only allowed a single goal, even though they didn’t score any.
Now, it will be the moment for them to get the ball at the back of the net, while they keep their resisting defense against their Nigerian counterparts.
A 2-2 draw in their first game against Benin and a 2-0 defeat to Egypt are the cause of Mozambique’s position in Group C in the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. They now seat at the bottom of the table with a (-2) goal difference.
However, a win against the Super Eagles could be enough to send the Mambas into the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations, depending on the final result of the Egypt vs Benin game.
Aside of his wish to send his side into the quarter-finals, Coach Nooij of Mozambique will also be hoping to overpower Coach Amodu of Nigeria, knowing that he could be chosen as the new commandant of the Nigerian army ahead of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Nooij is somehow fortunate to have his players fit ahead of this hard match, yet it will be his choice whether he will add his defender Dario Khan, who has significantly and unintentionally reduced the hopes of his country by scoring two own-goals in two consecutive games against Benin, and Egypt.
Despite this fact, the manager believes that Mozambique have what it takes to reach the second phase of the competition in Angola, and he wasn’t afraid to reveal his thoughts to the media.
“Mozambique (national football team) are here to prove that we exist in international football after 12 years out of the competition,” declared Martin Nooij while speaking to Soccernet.com.
“The world is now aware that we also play football in Mozambique, and we are ready to show our capabilities in our next game against Nigeria.”
The score line of such a game is very hard to predict, but we surely can expect the very best out of both sides, as the game highlights the likes of great players including Peter Odemwingie and Yakubu Ayegbeni for the Nigerians, as well as Manuel Tico Tico for the Mozambicans.
