Super Eagles onfield Captain, William Ekong who has shown excellent leadership skills so far at the Africa cup of nations, says the match against Angola could prove to be the toughest yet for the Eagles, but that himself and team mates are ready for the battle.
“It is going to be a difficult game, like the ones against Cote d’Ivoire and Cameroon, and even Equatorial Guinea. We must be at our best and focus on the prize.”
The two sides have a bittersweet history between them.
One of the most memorable game between the two sides was when Angola edged Nigeria to reach the last round of the qualification series for the 1990 FIFA World Cup finals in Italy, but the return leg in Nigeria that the Eagles won 1-0 was under a cloud of tragedy as playmaker Samuel Okwaraji collapsed and died 13 minutes from Full time on 12th August 1989.
The most recent encounter with Angola was when they stood as a stumbling block for Nigeria stopping the Eagles from reaching the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals, after a 0-1 loss in Luanda to draw 1-1 with the Negras at the Sani Abacha Stadium in June 2005.
The game is slated for 6pm Nigeria time on Friday.