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Ighalo, Chukwueze tip Super Eagles after AFCON draw

Super Eagles star striker Odion Ighalo has admitted that Nigeria has been drawn in a decent group following Friday’s Egypt 2019 Africa Cup of Nations placement in Group B along with Guinea and two debutantes –Madagascar and Burundi.

Ighalo, who was Egypt 2019 qualifiers’ top scorer and scored an impressive seven goals in the series to help the Super Eagles to their first AFCON since 2013, said the draw is a positive indication to the aspirations of the coach Gernot Rohr-led squad.

“We are in a decent group but we still need to work hard,” noted the inform Shanghai Shenhua striker. “Yes, I agree that the draw is a good omen for us; we are positive but no team is a pushover and that means we have to take each game seriously.”

Nigeria has only three titles won in 1980, 1994 and 2013 since the launch of the continental flagship championship in 1957 and missed out of the last two editions of the AFCON in 2015 and 2017.

Meanwhile, Super Eagles’ new boy, Samuel Chukwueze, has equally said Nigeria cannot afford to underrate any of their Group B rivals.

“In my opinion, the draw is very good,” the Villarreal striker told Sportinglife.ng. “We don’t need to underrate our opponents because every team is good in their own right.”

The 32nd AFCON finals will be held in six venues namely: Cairo International Stadium; Borg El-Arab Stadium, Alexandria; Suez Stadium; Air Defence Stadium; Ismailia Stadium and; Al Salam Stadium in Egypt between 21st June – 19thJuly 2019.

Hosts Egypt are drawn in Group A along with DR Congo, Uganda and Zimbabwe; and the Pharaohs will kick off the tournament at the imposing Cairo International Stadium against the Brave Warriors of Zimbabwe.

  In the other groups, Coach Emmanuel Amuneke-led Tanzania, who are making a return to the AFCON since 1980, are housed in Group C along with Senegal, Algeria and Kenya. 

Two teams from each group will go into the last 16, with the four best third-placed teams also progressing.

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