Baxter’s Bafana face searching test
UYO: NIGERIA HAVE A POINT TO PROVE AFTER COSTLY DRAW
Boasting a host of top African names in European club football, an impressive record against Bafana Bafana, and more preparation time than their opponents, it is Gernot Rohr’s Nigeria who appear to hold all the aces heading into Saturday’s opening 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Uyo.
While Stuart Baxter’s first Bafana squad only gathered in Johannesburg on Sunday, some of the Nigeria squad have been in a training camp in Corsica since May 24, as Rohr aims to leave no stone unturned in his preparations. The Super Eagles played Togo in a friendly in Paris on June 1, comfortably winning 3-0, with two goals from Leicester City’s Ahmed Musa, and another from Manchester City’s Kelechi Iheanacho.
Musa and Iheanacho are just a couple of stars of the Nigerian team, with only three members of the squad plying their trade outside of European club football. These include one South Africa-based player in Chippa United goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi. Nigeria are missing a couple of key players through injury, with Chelsea wingback Victor Moses requiring a toe operation, and Mainz defender Leon Balogun also ruled out, but Rohr still has an abundance of talent at his disposal, particularly in attack, to make Bafana fans green with envy.
“Our team is young and has a good future, but there is a lot of work to do still,” Rohr told KweséESPN after the Togo game.
“We had a good camp in Corsica on the invitation of their association ... and we also had excellent conditions in Paris.”
Nigeria will also be keen on revenge over Bafana in Uyo on Saturday. South Africa have never beaten Nigeria in a competitive match, but Shakes Mashaba’s side did dump Nigeria out of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations with a 2-2 qualifying draw in Uyo on November 19, 2014, Tokelo Rantie netting both of Bafana’s goals.