Super Eagles have had the hunger for the AFCON, since 2013 after they won it in a final against Burkina Faso. However, the last AFCON final left many fans disappointed, even though they were impressed by the Super Eagles performance in the overall competition. 

In preparation for the 2025 AFCON a qualifiers event is held, where the several teams will qualify and go for the title. This post highlights the important apparatus for the team during the qualifying rounds and important players, who will be able to change the course of the event.

AFCON 2025 Qualifiers: Key Fixtures Events and Updates 

The focus of the 2025 edition of the continental tournament, which will take place in Morocco, is to feature the best teams. This is why the qualifiers are necessary. Also, after 1Win login, bettors may be interested in the football appropriation matches as well, as they have good betting opportunities. The AFCON 2025 qualifiers starts with the non-qualification phases that consists of 52 teams. After that we will have the group stages, and it is scheduled to take place in September and October of 2024. The Super Eagles are gearing up for a purposeful surge as they prepare to lace their boots for the battle of the bird spit.

Many fans are anticipating them to build on their splendid performance at the last AFCON competition. However, the Super Eagles current form at the World Cup qualifying rounds have  left some worries. In the event, they lost 2-1 to Benin and drew 1-1 to South Africa. Their current form saw them claim only three points from the last four matches in the rounds. 

However, fans still believe that the Super Eagles can start on a clean slate, especially after the first team’s coach, Finidi George, left his job. The Nigerian Football Federation followed on this action by appointing Augustine Eguavoen to fill in the role as interim coach. Augustine Eguavoen was the former technical director of football and his appointment followed after the German Coach, Franco Labbadia turned down the job. 

Augustine Eguavoen faces a tough challenge in getting the best out of this team, especially with the tight fixtures and Victor Osimhen’s insubordination. The group stage fixtures will see them first welcome Benin at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo. The key matches in the Super Eagles fixtures for the AFCON qualifiers include: 

• Nigeria VS Benin (7th September, 2024) 
• Rwanda VS Nigeria (10 September, 2024) 
• Nigeria VS Libya (11th October, 2024) 
• Libya VS Nigeria (15th October, 2024) 
• Benin VS Nigeria (11th November, 2024)
• Nigeria VS Rwanda (15th November, 2024) 

Nigerian Football Impactful Players for the Competition

As the Super Eagles prepare for the AFCON qualifying rounds, several players will be important for the matches. Although we may see some NPFL stars feature in the competition, certain senior players must feature to ensure our success. Here are the key players to watch for the fixtures.

Victor Osimhen

Victor Osimhen is one of Nigeria’s superstars and will be featured in the 2025 AFCON qualifying rounds. The player has the African Player of the Year Award under his belt after making a solid impact in the last African Cup of Nations competition, being the top scorer. We feel that this player could make a difference, especially because he missed the World Cup qualifying matches where the Super Eagles underperformed. 

The team missed several of his important traits, including his leadership and tenacity. The footballer is also excelling, especially in the 2023/24 season, where he had a good run of form in the league games. In the table is Victor’s Osimhen stats for the 2023/24 season. The Nigerian star man was traded recently to Galatasaray.

Moses Simon 

Another impressive performer at the last AFCON, we hope to see more of Moses Simon, especially with his injury records. Similar to Osimhen, the winger excels at the international stage and has netted two goals in three games for Nantes in 2024/2025 season. This player will be key as Super Eagles hope to atone for their mistakes in the World Cup qualifying rounds. The player’s creativity and dribbling skills will be pivotal in ensuring that the Super Eagles go through the rounds as first place winners.

William Troost–Ekong

This player missed the last four games of the Super Eagles due to injuries. Again, the team missed his leadership as they underperformed, especially in the defensive areas and they struggled to keep a clean sheet. The player was also splendid in the 2023 AFCON as he organized the Nigerian defence. We hope he stays fit for the qualifying rounds to lead the Super Eagles’ defense and contain attacks of tough teams in the competition.

Conclusion

For Nigeria to feature in the 2025 AFCON competition, they will need to win most of their qualifying matches. They have strong opponents, and to beat them, they have to be in their peak form, with several key players like Osimhen and Simon stepping up to make an impact. If you want to know more about the competition, visit our blog and read a series like this one.