The 34th edition of Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament will take place from January 13 to February 11, 2024 in Cote d’Ivoire. The Super Eagles are in Group A alongside Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau. The Super Eagles will play their first match on January 14 against Equatorial Guinea. They will also face Cote d’Ivoire four days later, while their final Group A fixture is against Guinea-Bissau on January 22.
With the substantial increase in AFCON Prize money by about 40 per cent by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the winner of the TotalEnergies AFCON will go home with $7million. Similarly, the runners-up will get $4million. Each of the two semi-finalists will receive $2.5 million respectively, while the quarter-finalist will receive $1.3 million.
The CAF President, Dr. Patrice Motsepe, says that CAF has made significant progress over the past two years in increasing the prize money of the AFCON and its other major competitions. He also expressed optimism that the prize money will contribute to the development of football in Africa.
After their lackluster performance in the 33rd edition of AFCON in Cameroon, and absence from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Nigerians expect the Super Eagles to up their games and redeem their past glory in the round leather game in Africa with the AFCON Cote d’Ivoire 2023. Unfortunately, the Super Eagles have not lived up to expectations in some of their outings in recent times. It is also worrisome that their rating in the world and in Africa has been on the decline. This can possibly explain why some soccer pundits are not considering them as the tournament favourites.
This notwithstanding, the team should approach the games with a winner’s mindset as well as the spirit of sportsmanship. However, they should not underrate any team. In African football, no team should ever be regarded as a minnow. Therefore, any team can win the AFCON trophy, irrespective of what soccer pundits are saying.
Instructively, President Bola Tinubu has boosted the morale of the team and their handlers by approving $1.3million to offset the outstanding salary of Coach Jose Peseiro and all pending bonuses and allowances for the team’s 26 matches. The Minister of Sports, John Enoh, has commended President Tinubu for given the Nigerian team the much-needed support to win a 4th AFCON title in Cote D’Ivoire. “We have the full backing of the President and we hope we will make the best of it,” the minister stated.
Nigerians would want the Super Eagles to win their 4th AFCON title in Cote d’Ivoire. However, the team must work hard to win the coveted trophy. Prayers and wishes alone are just not enough to win it. It takes hard work and determination to win the AFCON competition. Good enough, we have many talented players and able team handlers to win the African Cup.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the team handlers should concentrate on how to approach the games so that the Super Eagles can clinch their 4th AFCON title in Cote d’Ivoire. This is the major task before the Coach Peseiro-led team. For the Super Eagles to do well in this tournament, we appeal to the NFF and the minister in charge of sports to allow the coaching crew to select members of the Nigerian squad.
The team handlers must be allowed to dictate the pace of the games and who gets what position. Official meddlesomeness in the past had been the greatest undoing of the team. We must do everything possible to avoid undue official interference in our football. The welfare of the team and the handlers must be paramount. There is need for cohesion and team work among the Super Eagles players. The individual talent of the players is not in doubt, they can only win the trophy as a team. This is why it is important that they play according to instructions and as a cohesive team.
Every match in this tournament counts and must be approached as if it is the final. The team’s psychologist must work on the players and prepare them adequately for the tournament. While wishing the Super Eagles the best of luck in the tournament, we enjoin them to bring home the coveted AFCON trophy.