Your Web 3 Guru and Moonbet presenting todays match: Nigeria – South Africa
Nigeria finds itself in familiar territory once again, reaching the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) semi-finals for an unprecedented 15th time. However, history hasn’t always been kind to the Nigerians at this stage, with five of their last six appearances in the AFCON semi-finals resulting in defeat, with the exception of their triumphant campaign in 2013.
Their opponents, South Africa, were the hosts during their victorious AFCON campaign in 2013. Interestingly, Nigeria has struggled against South Africa in recent encounters, managing only one win, with four draws and one loss. However, with the Super Eagles boasting four consecutive wins “to nil” in this tournament, they appear to have the edge as they prepare to take on South Africa in Bouaké for the first time in this AFCON.
Following their quarter-final match in Abidjan, Nigeria faced a lengthy journey of nearly 450 km to reach Bouaké. Meanwhile, South Africa had a shorter trip of 110 km, albeit after a grueling extra time and penalty shootout victory against Cape Verde. Goalkeeper Ronwen Williams emerged as the hero of the shootout, becoming the first goalkeeper in AFCON history to save four penalties in a single shootout.
Despite securing their first AFCON semi-finals appearance in 24 years, South Africa will be eager to avoid a repeat of their defeat at this stage in 1998, especially considering Nigeria’s victory over them back then. Both teams come into this clash on the back of four consecutive clean sheets in the tournament, indicating that the match could be a tense and closely contested affair.
Key players to watch include Nigeria’s William Troost-Ekong, who has already scored in this AFCON and netted the winner against South Africa in their previous encounter in 2019. South Africa’s Teboho Mokoena will also be looking to make an impact, particularly given his tendency to score crucial late goals, with four of his five goals coming as the last of the game.
Interesting statistic: Only one of South Africa’s last ten AFCON matches saw both teams scoring.
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