THE date for the friendly match between the Super Eagles and Egypt has been changed due to the ruling by FIFA that clubs can hold on to their players until December 15 before they are released for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
Seven-time AFCON winners Egypt and three-time winners Nigeria were scheduled to clash in a tune-up game in Cairo on Sunday, December 14, in line with an initial FIFA regulation that ruled that players be released earlier.
The friendly has now been shifted by two days to December 16 as a result of the new FIFA decision, the Nigeria Football Federation explained today.
Aside from ...ponement, the game will now be a practice match in order to allow the two teams to make use of more than five substitutes in the encounter, which will kick off at 8pm Egyptian time (7pm Nigerian time) at the Cairo Stadium.
The Super Eagles are in Group C of the 35th AFCON along with 2004 champions Tunisia, 1978 runners-up Uganda, and Tanzania.
Nigeria’s first match is on Tuesday, December 23 against Tanzania’s Taifa Stars at the Complexe Sportif de Fes, where they will also tackle Tunisia’s Carthage Eagles (Saturday, December 27 and the Cranes of Uganda (Tuesday, December 30).
The Pharaohs, who hosted the tournament in 2019, are in Group B with 1996 hosts and winners South Africa, 2010 hosts Angola, and Zimbabwe.
Their matches will be at the Stade d’Agadir.