AFCON 2023: “We know the strengths of Nigeria” – Ivory Coast coach says ahead of Super Eagles clash

The Super Eagles of Nigeria played a 1-1 draw against Equatorial Guinea in their opening AFCON Group A fixture in Ivory Coast.

Coach of the Ivorian National Football team, Jean Louis Gasset, has expressed that his side knows where the strength of the Super Eagles lie,  Soccernet.ng reports.

The Elephants of Cote D’ivoire defeated Guinea-Bissau in the opening group fixture, thanks to goals from Jean-Philippe Krasso and Seko Fofana. The Ivorians are currently top of Group A with three points.

The Ivorians are set to take on Jose Peseiro’s men on Thursday afternoon, with both sides hungry for all three points to gain further ground in their race for qualification.

With both sides set to lock horns, the Ivory Coast coach highlighted that he knows the strength of the Nigerian team, especially since they have the best African player in their squad.

“Regarding our second match, we know the strengths of Nigeria, they have an impressive offensive armada, they have the best African player in their squad, but against them, we will have to raise our cursor, and I know my players will do it because I know you had to win that first game to be released,” the 70-year-old French coach said.

Both teams have five African Cup of Nations trophies between them and are set for a scintillating clash at the Stade Olympique Ouattara on Thursday, with the hosts having the advantage of playing on home soil.

Adefolahan Guerreiro

Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria. With a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience. He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.

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  • The game is going to be won in the midfield. The Ivorians would rely on the hefty seko fofana while nigeria would hope on young star, al hassan yusuf. But I can assure the Ivorians that the game would be tough and both teams would share the points at worst.

  • Nigeria is no longer at the mercy of God to win matches at the world level because the Lord has turned his back on her because of her wickedness, idolatory, lies, deceits, corruption and godlessness.
    Nigeria can't go beyond quarter–final of this AFCON tournament.

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