Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong is optimistic about Nigeria’s chances of securing a positive result against Benin in their opening match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers on Saturday.
Nigeria aims to redeem themselves after a 2-1 defeat to Benin in June during their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Despite their superior attacking prowess, the Eagles will remain cautious of the Cheetahs, whose coach possesses intimate knowledge of the Nigerian players.
The Super Eagles squad is now at full strength with the return of striker Victor Osimhen and defender William Troost-Ekong. Both players missed the last two friendlies and two World Cup qualifying matches but are back in action for the first time since the AFCON final against Côte d’Ivoire.
Speaking ahead of the match, Troost-Ekong stated that the Eagles have learned from the mistakes that contributed to their June defeat and are better prepared for Saturday’s clash at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo.
“We’d be more ready, it happens (losing to Benin in June), good teams face difficult moments,” Troost-Ekong said in an interview with sports reporter Modo Victor.
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“We also have to give respect to Benin and our old coach Gernot Rohr. We are better prepared now and if anything more motivated and we have to learn from those mistakes the games against Beini and Rwanda won’t be easy, but I have a lot of belief in the team.
“We’re going to prepare ourselves the best way we can, in football nothing is guaranteed but we’re going to do our best and that will be more than enough (to win the game).”
A win for Nigeria against Benin will see them go top of Group D leapfrogging Rwanda and Libya who settled for a 1-1 draw in their opening group game earlier in the week.
