Nigeria vs DR Congo
International Friendlies
Date: Monday, 28th May 2018
Kick-Off at 17:00 UK / 18:00 CET
Venue: Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt.
Nigeria host DR Congo for their Friendly clash at Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt looking for a return to the winning ways after a troubled 0-2 loss to Serbia in the hope they can lift their team spirits ahead of the World Cup in Russia – beating struggling and similarly unpredictable rivals recently.
The match will be a nice opportunity for Gernot Rohr and his men to instil some confidence into them ahead of much tougher checks with the likes of England and Czech Republic upcoming.
The Super Eagles eased their way to top the WC Qualifying Group B being the first African side to secure the summer in Russia. They won four and drew two of six fixtures in the final group stage which is a remarkable success given the opposition included the likes of Cameroon, Algeria and Zambia.
Super Eagles boast great records in front of the home crowd and now come as heavy favourites to bag another win on the day, regularly putting on great displays at the back and basing their success on such performances. They look desperate to build on their consistency and this surely does seem like a great spot to start doing so.
DR Congo have failed to make their way to Russia and have struggled to bounce back after such a disappointment, as they suffered a comfortable 2-0 loss to Tanzania in late March. It was a nominal 1 point deficit with Tunisia that denied the Leopards a place in the global tournament. But, truth be told, Jean-Florent Ibenge’s side has a much easier group as they played the likes of Libya and Guinea aside from Tunisia. They haven’t been able to keep it together at the back and this has been a huge factor in the shortcomings.
Nigeria vs DR Congo: Head-to-head
Interestingly, the two teams have never taken on each other in a competitive affair. This will be their third head to head encounter, each of which was of a friendly character.
Nigeria destroyed their counterparts in the first one played eight years ago (5-2), but Congo DR got a bit of a revenge five years later when they took a 0-2 victory.
We now expect another exciting occasion with goals, despite no high stakes involved.
Nigeria vs DR Congo Predictions
The Super Eagles are no doubts much more talented group of players as you’ll recognize some of the Premier League names in their ranks. Chelsea’s Victor Moses is the star man and the one who scored the most goals en route to Russia, while we can’t forget the likes of Kelechi Iheanacho, Odion Ighalo, Ahmed Musa, John Obi Mikel, Alex Iwobi etc.
Nigeria showed strength when they defeated Poland in a friendly played in March this year when Moses bagged the only goal. However, Rohr’s men failed to back it up just four days later when they fell 0-2 to Serbia.
Congo, on the other side, lost 2-0 to Tanzania in their previous action in March and we can hardly see them making an upset against a much more motivated rival here. Nigeria are massive favourites and we’ll back them to grab the confidence-boosting win at the 1.55 odds.
Nigeria vs DR Congo: Bet Tips
- Nigeria to win @ 1.55
- Nigeria -1.5 handicap @ 2.60.
- Over 2.5 match goals @ 2.30.
Article updated on Friday, 25 May 2018. Additional analysis by Mick Glennon.
