Egypt v Nigeria 2nd leg | Match Preview
Match Info:
Info: 2nd leg of the Africa Cup of Nations 2017 qualifier
Date & Time: 19:00 Cairo Local Time | Tuesday, March 29th 2016
Venue: Borg El Arab, Alexandria, Egypt
Seven-time African champions Egypt secured a precious 1-1 draw away to Nigeria that kept them at the top of their group in the qualifiers.
The valuable draw put Egypt in a comfortable position before they host the Super Eagles in the second of a double-header at Alexandria’s Borg El-Arab Stadium on Tuesday.
Egyptian fans allowed
Despite the current crowd ban in Egypt, the Pharaohs will be boosted by the presence of 40,000 supporters when they host Nigeria at Borg El-Arab Stadium in Alexandria.
Egypt’s Interior ministry said it would allow 40,000 supporters to attend Tuesday’s anticipated match between the national team and Nigeria in the African Cup of Nations qulifiers, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) announced on Sunday.
Security officials initially approved the attendance of 10,000 fans before adding another 5,000 and finally settling on 40,000.
Fans have lined up in queues in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria to buy tickets since they were put up for sale a couple of days ago, prompting the EFA to ask security officials for an increase in the number of supporters allowed to attend the match
A win or a draw would keep the seven-time African champions on top before their final game against minnows Tanzania.
Egypt have four points, two ahead of Nigeria and three clear of third-placed Tanzania. Chad suddenly withdrew from the qualifying stage on Sunday, leaving only three teams in the group.
The group winners will automatically reach next year’s Nations Cup finals in Gabon.
Egypt TEAM NEWS:
Elneny warned Alex Iwobi
Egypt midfielder, Mohamed Elneny has revealed that he warned his Arsenal teammate, Alex Iwobi, that the Pharaohs will be tough for Super Eagles when they clash in the two legs of their 2017 AFCON qualifiers – this Friday in Kaduna, and next week Tuesday in Alexandria.
Elneny is confident that Egypt will beat the Super Eagles to the maximum points in their 2017 Africa Cup of Nations double header.
“I have a good feeling that we will be able to win the match. Nigeria is a tough team, but we are good,” Elneny told MBC TV.
“I also feel that I am surrounded by support from everyone encouraging us to get back to winning.”
Elneny is also looking forward to coming up against his Arsenal teammate, Alex Iwobi.
“I told him (Iwobi) that it will be hard for Nigeria to beat Egypt, ” he quipped.
Hector Cuper: “we are only looking for a win”
Egypt coach Hector Cuper was heavily criticised for his cautious approach in the first leg, but he confirmed on Sunday that his men would adopt an attacking strategy this time.
“We will try to create more goal-scoring opportunities and be better than in Friday’s game, as we are only looking for a win,” he said.
“The attendance of fans will give us an edge. It will be different in Alexandria [than in Kaduna],” the Argentinean added.
Interview with Egypt’s coach Hector Cuper on Al Hayah TV
Nigeria TEAM NEWS
Carl Ikeme, is out
Super Eagles first choice goalkeeper, Carl Ikeme, is out of Tuesday’s 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Egypt in Alexandria.
Super Eagles medical crew confirmed that the goalkeeper has stomach upset which has kept him out of training since Friday’s game in Kaduna.
Nigeria’s Coach Samson Siasia “We will turn the table in Alexandria”
“We will turn the table in Alexandria, of course we can. We have been in this situation before so why can’t we (win in Alexandria). We have to move forward after Friday’s game. Moving forward is that we have to get ourselves together and try to go to Egypt and win. This is a game of football when anything can happen. So we will go out there and try and win in Egypt. If we don’t win that means we are out of the game. We will try our best to go and win there. Everything is possible”, Siasia promised.
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