Super Eagles vs Equatorial Guinea: Peseiro leads intense training for Nigeria's AFCON opener

The Super Eagles of Nigeria are set for their first group game of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d'Ivoire

The team since arriving in the host country in White kaftan and green caps have made several replacements.

The three-time African champions had not triumphed in their previous five games going into this weekend's crucial AFCON opener.

In October, they drew in friendly matches against Saudi Arabia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In November, they were held in 2026 World Cup qualifying matches by Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

In the last warm-up match on Monday in Dubai, they were defeated 2-0 by Guinea, another AFCON finalist.

After winning their first-round group, Tunisia eliminated the Eagles in the Round of 16 at the most recent tournament in Cameroon.

In addition, the injuries to important players Wilfred Ndidi, Victor Boniface, and Sadiq Umar have severely damaged the team's chances.

Coach Jose Peseiro has insisted that the team can advance all the way to Cote d'Ivoire, despite the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) assigning them a semifinal target.

Group A's hosts, Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, and Guinea Bissau are drawn with the Super Eagles.

They kick off their campaign on Sunday in Nigeria time at 3 p.m. against Equatorial Guinea.

In the 2021 competition, Equatorial Guinea advanced further than Nigeria, reaching the quarterfinals.

In the knockout Round of 16, the overall winners of Group A will play the third-best losers from Groups C, D, or E, and the runners-up will play the runners-up from Group C.