Nigeria Vs Tunisia: Head To Head, Time, Venue And Where To Watch U20 AFCON Group B Opener

Nigeria Vs Tunisia: Head To Head, Time, Venue And Where To Watch U20 AFCON Group B Opener

By Admin

Nigeria and Tunisia open their Group B campaigns at the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in a heavyweight clash at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo on Thursday (kick-off 18:00 local time / 15:00 GMT).

The pair meet in what will be a fourth tie and sixth fixture in the TotalEnergies CAF U20 AFCON.

Including games over two legs, they have played five games previously. Nigeria have three wins, Tunisia have one, with one game drawn.

Nigeria have scored in all five of their previous meetings with Tunisia.

The rivalry between the teams stretches back to 1981 when Nigeria defeated Tunisia over two legs 5-4 on aggregate. The first game saw Nigeria win 4-0, and despite a 4-1 victory by Tunisia in the second leg, Nigeria held on to win the tie.

The next meetings between the teams came in 1985 in the final over two legs. The first with Tunisia as hosts ended 1-1 before Nigeria won the second leg 2-1 for a 3-2 aggregate victory.

Their last meeting was in the third-place play-off in 2023 as Nigeria won the game 4-0.

NIGERIA FACTS 

· Nigeria are nine times finalists and the most successful team at the finals with seven titles.

· Nigeria have been champions in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2005, 2011 and 2015.

They are making their 19th appearance at the finals having first qualified in 1979. They have only missed out on qualification four times previously in 1993, 2001, 2017 and 2021.

· Nigeria in their previous 18 qualifications have reached the semi-finals at least 16 times. They have exited in the group stage only twice in 1993 and 2001.

· Nigeria have finished in the top three 15 times, only ended fourth once in 2019.

· They have never won the tournament when it has been hosted in North Africa.

Nigeria will play their 98th game at the finals and will reach 100 matches at the tournament in their final group game.

· Nigeria have one loss in their last 11 group stage games (W8 D2). Their defeat against Senegal in their opening game in 2023 is their only loss.

· In Nigeria’s last 11 games at the finals, in just one game, their 2019 semi-final against Mali, have both teams managed to score.

In their last 10 tournament appearances Nigeria have won their opening game seven times. They have lost twice, to Mali in 2013 and Senegal in 2023, both 1-0 losses. They also drew with Mali 0-0 in 2001.

TUNISIA FACTS

· Tunisia have qualified for three successive finals, the first time they have done so since participating in six tournaments in a row between 1979 and 1989.

· Their best finish is as runners-up to Nigeria in 1985 and will feature in a finals tournament hosted by a fellow North African side for the first time.

Tunisia reached the semi-finals at the last two finals they have featured at, finishing fourth in 2021 and 2023.

· They reached the semi-finals in 2023 despite failing to win their first two games, began with a 1-0 loss against Gambia and then drew 0-0 with Benin, before winning their final game against Zambia 2-1. They drew 3-3 with Congo in the quarter-final before winning on penalties, then lost to Senegal and Nigeria in the play-off for third.

Tunisia qualified for the finals by ending third in the UNAF qualifying tournament. They won against Libya and Algeria in their first and third games, and despite losses to Morocco and Egypt they managed to reach the finals after the latter earned their place as hosts.  

· Tunisia have conceded at least three goals in each of their last three games at the finals. They drew 3-3 with Congo in the quarter-finals before winning on penalties but then lost 3-0 and 4-0 respectively to Senegal and Nigeria.

· They are winless in their last nine games against West African teams (D6 L3).

Tunisia’s last win over a West African team was a 1-0 away success in the first leg of their first round tie against Guinea in 1987. They won 2-1 on aggregate after the second leg ended 1-1.