Benin Republic v Nigeria: Eagles tackle familiar foes in WAFU Cup semifinal

Today’s encounter at the Cape Coast Sports Stadium by 4 pm will make it the third time in the space of two months that the Home Eagles will be battling the Squirrels of the Benin Republic in competitive games.

The CHAN Eagles in keenly contested matches defeated the Squirrels 2-1 on aggregate to qualify for 2018 African Nations Championship to be stagged in Kenya, again they are on the path of the Nigeria to the WAFU Cup final.

Benin who finished top of group B ahead of heavyweights like Senegal, Ivory Coast, and Niger head into the semifinal full of confidence and would be banking on their form, their encouraging performances when they faced Nigeria in August over two legs in the CHAN qualifiers.

Coach Oumar Tchomogo and his underdog side will fancy their chances against the Home Eagles.

Nigeria on the hand will hope to continue from where they stopped against the hosts, Ghana. After two goalless draws against Mali and Guinea, the Salisu Yusuf led team found their form in time to beat the hosts in front of their fans to book a spot in the semifinal.

The winner of this semifinal will face either Ghana or Niger in the final on Sunday, while the loser will play in the third-place playoff on Saturday.

Nigeria and Benin have met in 18 previous matches, according to FIFA statistics. The Super Eagles have claimed 11 wins – compared to just two for the Squirrels – and outscored their opponents 42 goals to 10 in the process.