World Cup 2022 Play-off: Nigeria announce date and venue for Ghana clash
According to the country’s football ruling body, the reverse fixture of the cracker against the Black Stars will be held on March 27 at the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abuja.
However, Ghana Football Association is yet to confirm if the first leg billed for the Cape Coast Stadium will be on March 23rd or March 24th 2022.
Nigeria – who crashed out in the Round of 16 of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon – will be aiming to qualify for the global football showpiece for the seventh time.
Their last appearance was in Russia 2018, where they failed to negotiate their way past Argentina, Iceland and Croatia in the group stage.
Last year, the three-time African kings topped a zone that boasted Cape Verde, Liberia and the Central African Republic.
For the Black Stars, they qualified from a group that had South Africa, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia.
Towards qualifying for the 2002 edition, Ghana and Nigeria were pooled in Group B with Liberia, Sudan and Sierra Leone.
The first leg staged at the Accra Sports Stadium ended 0-0, while the Super Eagles – handled by the late Amodu Shaibu triumphed 3-0 in the reverse fixture.
A first-half brace from Tijani Babangida plus a strike from Victor Agali at the Liberation Stadium, Port Harcourt propelled Nigeria past the Ghanaians who finished fourth on the log.
Still fresh from their disappointing Africa Cup of Nations ouster, Ghana – who are yet to announce a permanent replacement for the fired Milovan Rajevac – would be aiming to appease their fans by earning a fourth World Cup appearance.
On Monday evening, the NFF disclosed that Augustine Eguavoen will lead the country against their West African foes with Emmanuel Amuneke drafted in as his assistant.
In other pairings, Egypt will square up against reigning African kings Senegal, while Afcon 2021 hosts Cameroon must get past Algeria if they are to reach the World Cup for an African record eighth time.
Mali are craving to make their debut appearance at the quadrennial football fiesta, but they will have to subdue Tunisia to achieve their mission.
