On Tuesday, the Home-based Super Eagles have the opportunity of going for a third full bonus when they take on pointless debutants Equatorial Guinea at the Stade Adrar in Agadir.
At the same time Libya will be playing Rwanda in what promises to be an explosive tie-in Tangier. Kick –off is 7pm Morocco time (8pm in Nigeria).
Four –pointer Nigeria will be guaranteed a place in the last eight if they avoid defeat against Equatorial Guinea. Rwanda, also with four points and same one-goal advantage as Nigeria, will hope to also avoid defeat against three-pointer Libya to reach the last eight.
If the Eagles finish top of the table, they would return to Tangier to tackle the second –placed team in Group D on Sunday, 28th January with the possibility of a semi final in Marrakech three days later.
Should they finish second in the pool, they would be up against the top –placed team in Group D in Agadir also on Sunday, 28th January with the possibility of a semi-final at Casablanca’s Stade Mohamed V three days later.
The final match of the championship is scheduled for the Stade Mohamed V on Sunday, 4th February.
…Guinea loses appeal over eligibility of Sudanese player
Following the dismissal of coach Kanfory Bangoura at the ongoing 2018 African Nations Championship, Guinea have now also lost an appeal lodged against the eligibility of a Sudanese player at the tournament.
Although they are yet to finish their Group A assignments, Guinea cannot reach the last eight from the group after defeats against Sudan and Morocco.
They protested to CAF that Elsmani Elsawi Saadeldin, who signed for Libyan club Al Ittihad Tripoli on December 31, was not eligible to play against them.
Although tournament regulations say Sudanese players must be registered with clubs in Sudan, CAF has dismissed the appeal.
