Nigeria and South Africa play in the Cairo International Stadium, in Cairo, in the quarterfinals of the African Cup of Nations. Nigeria has a great advantage in the history of direct confrontations, since it has 6 victories, 4 draws and 1 loss in the last 11 games in several competitions. In the last match between them there was a 1-1 draw.
Nigeria:
The Nigerian team arrives at this highly motivated game, having eliminated one of the candidates for the title of the competition, Cameroon. In a very emotional game, and with several comebacks, Nigeria managed a 3-2 victory: the team’s goals were scored by Ighalo (2) and Alex Iwobi. It should be noted that the Nigerians have already won the African Cup of Nations three times, the last time in 2013.
Analyzing the last 10 games, it is possible to perceive that Gernot Rohr’s men scored an average of 1 goal and suffered an average of 0.7 goals per game, which shows great skill in the defensive sector. Nigeria’s best moment in the games mentioned above is between minutes 61 ‘and 75’, when he scored 3 goals and suffered none. Striker Odhi Ighalo, of Shanghai Shenhua, is the best striker in the competition, with 3 goals scored. There are no absences of weight for this game.
South Africa:
South Africa comes into this match with a 0-1 victory against Egypt, causing a great impact in this African Cup of Nations: Thembinkosi Lorch was the great hero, scoring the only goal. In that game against the Egyptians, the hosts of the competition, the South Africans played a very defensive game, sometimes depressing, however, they took advantage of the opponent’s defensive imbalance to score the only goal of the game. We remember that South Africa already won this competition, in 1996.
Analyzing the 10 previous games, the team of Stuart Baxter scored on average 1.2 goals and suffered 0.5 goals per game, thus showing a very solid defensive sector. The best period of South Africa is between the 76 ‘and 90’ minutes, scoring 2 goals and suffering only 1. Zungu and Thembinkosi Lorch are the best gunners of this team, with 1 goal scored each. However, it is important to emphasize that the coach can not count on Zungu, suspended.
