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Nigeria will play hosts to Guinea-Bissau in the first of 2 AFCON 2023 qualifying games, here are the Djurtus players to take note of ahead of the clash in Abuja.
Nigeria will play hosts to Guinea-Bissau at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja in continuation of their bid to qualify for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
The game on Friday, March 24 will be the first of two games against the Dijurtus who have it all to do against Nigeria who already have two wins out of two in this qualifying campaign.
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However, this game is not a foregone conclusion for Nigeria just yet as Guinea-Bissau also have players who can cause problems and here are five of them.
Five Guinea-Bissau to watch against the Super Eagles
Djurtus coach Baciro Cande invited 25 players for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers double-header against Nigeria, here are the 5 Guinea-Bissau players to watch in that squad.
Moreto Cassama
25-year-old central midfielder Moreto Cassama is in the Guinea-Bissau squad and could start against the Super Eagles on Friday just as he did over a year ago.
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Cassama started and played 78 minutes when both countries met at the 2022 AFCON in Cameroon, a game which Nigeria won 2-0 thanks to goals from Umar Sadiq and William Troost-Ekong.
The central midfielder currently plays for Cypriot club Omonia Nicosia, the same club as Super Eagles goalkeeper Francis Uzoho where he has played 25 games across all competitions this season.
Pele
The name Pele of course leads to memories of the late great Brazilian striker but for the people of Guinea-Bissau, he is the heartbeat of their midfield.
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Guinea-Bissau midfielder Alfredo Pele goes by just his last name for good reason but on his own is a reasonably decent player for club and country.
The 31-year-old has played 20 games for his country and 16 in all competitions for his club Famalicao in the Portuguese first division where he is on loan from French club Monaco.
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Jorginho
Fear not Nigerians, Arsenal midfield maestro Jorginho did not switch nationalities from Italy to Guinea-Bissau, the name refers to a forward in this case who plays his club football for Ludogorets Razgrad in Bulgaria.
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His real name is Jorge Fernando Barbosa Intima but the 27-year-old simply goes by Jorginho and is a credible goal threat for Nigeria to be worried about.
The winger scored in each of Guinea Bissau's first two games in this AFCON qualification series with a goal off the bench in a 5-1 thrashing of Sao Tome and then a brace in a 2-2 draw away at Sierra-Leone.
Piqueti
Piqueti Djassi Brito Silva simply known as Piqueti is a winger who poses threat down the right for the Guinea-BBissau national team.
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The 30-year-old plays his club football for Al-Shoalah FC in Saudi Arabia and has played 37 times for Guinea-Bissau before now, scoring seven goals.
Piqueti started the game against Nigeria in 2021 and played 70 minutes after which he was replaced and will be hoping for a better outcome this time around.
Alfa Semedo
Alfa Semedo Esteves is probably the highest-profile player on the Guinea-Bissau team as the 25-year-old has clubs like Benfica, Espanyol, Nottingham Forest, Reading and Victoria Guimaraes on his record.
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The midfielder now plays his club football in Saudi Arabia for Al Tai and is one of the key players for the Djurtus with 13 appearances and two goals.
Semedo is also versatile enough to feature in defence as well which is an advantage for the visitors when they play in Abuja on Friday.
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