NIGERIA TO OVERTURN

PREVIEW Nigeria have arrived at the tournament in Morocco still feeling the effects of their painful failure to qualify for the FIFA World Cup. The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is a chance for them to make amends. For Tanzania, even getting out of the group would be a major surprise. Nigeria Nigeria lost to DR Congo in the final play-off only after a penalty shoot-out (1:2). They were the favourites, with bookmakers offering odds on their win that were roughly half those for DR Congo. At this tournament, the squad are regarded as the fifth favourites for the title. They last lifted the trophy in 2013. In Morocco they will have one of the strongest attacking lines at the competition, featuring Victor Osimhen, Ademola Lookman and Samuel Chukwueze. Victor Boniface has not even made the final squad. He has a bruised knee, but the injury itself is not especially serious; there are other reasons for his omission as well. Tanzania Tanzania do not have players of that calibre, even though they are nicknamed the Taifa Stars. In qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup they finished well adrift even of the second play-off place in their group, and at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) the squad will be appearing only for the fourth time in their history. Over the last 10 years the team have taken part in the tournament twice, but on both occasions they finished bottom of their group. Their 2023 campaign was more competitive: they lost only to group favourites Morocco (0:3). Nigeria vs Tanzania Prediction Nigeria are also one of the two main contenders to win this group, so their attacking unit should be strong enough to cope even with a very defensive set-up that Tanzania are likely to choose. The only concern is that I do not expect the margin of victory to be large. The favorites still need time to settle into the tournament, and in qualifying for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) they struggled against the Taifa Stars as well, drawing 0:0 away and winning only 1:0 at home. Tip... Tanzania +2.5 goals handicap