Their mission to Lagos is simple – To beat the Super Eagles, by any margin possible, and the Blue Sharks of Cape Verde will advance to the last round of the qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
And Captain Marco Soares believes that the Blue Sharks are prepared to give it their all when they file out against the Super Eagles at the Teslim Balogun stadium this evening.
“Nigeria is a good team and that is why they’re the group leaders but they’re not better than us and we’ll prove it on Tuesday. And if CAR could come here to win then we are ready to do the same,” he said.
Empty boasts? Think again.
Ordinarily, the Nigerian team are three-time African champions and six-time World Cup attendees, should make short work of the Cape Verdeans who are still hoping for their maiden appearance at the Mundial.
Moreso, the Super Eagles apart from playing at home on familiar turf, lead Group C with a two-point gap over Cape Verde so all they require to advance to the next stage is a solitary point.
However, the Islanders are in fantastic form, having won their last three games, including a thrilling comeback 2-1 victory over the Central African Republic (CAR) in Mindelo on Saturday.
Besides, while it is a fact that they lost the reverse fixture at home 2-1 to Nigeria, they are a different team from the one which committed a cocktail of errors including an own-goal to gift the Super Eagles that victory.
The Super Eagles lost their 40-year home invincibility when they crashed to a shock 1-0 loss to the Central Africa Republic last month and the Blue Sharks would leapfrog Nigeria in the standings if they achieve a similar result in Lagos, and captain Soares has guaranteed that they will give it their all to obtain a result that will make their people proud back home.
Nigeria has a strong World Cup qualifying record, having only lost once in the last four decades on home soil.
The winner will join Egypt, Senegal, Morocco, and Mali and five others in the ultimate playoffs to determine Africa’s representatives to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
