Will the visitors make history?
Showdown in Group C of the African World Cup qualifiers between Nigeria and Benin, and Wettbasis has a tip for you! The hosts are third and could still overtake their upcoming opponents, who currently lead the table, on the last matchday with a win.
Only the top team in the table will qualify directly for next year’s finals, while the second-placed team may still have a chance by participating in the playoffs between the four best second-placed teams from the nine World Cup qualifying groups. The Super Eagles will be counting on home advantage in the match against the Benin national soccer team – they have yet to lose a World Cup qualifying match at home.
On the other hand, this record sounds better than it is. Last month’s home win against Rwanda was their first three points of this kind, and before that they had only managed three draws in front of their own fans.
The “Squirrels” are also in very stable form, with three recent wins without conceding a goal in World Cup qualifying. For the match between Nigeria and Benin at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, the prediction is also that the visitors will lose by a maximum of one goal.
Furthermore, we do not expect a shortage of goals. Due to the situation in the table, where only a win counts for both teams, we expect an open game. The odds on more than two goals therefore appear equally interesting.
Nigeria – Benin Head-to-head record/H2H balance
The two national teams last faced each other in November last year in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, with the match in Benin ending in a 1-1 draw. Nigeria won the last two home games against their upcoming opponents, scoring five goals in the two matches (5-1).
The bookmakers are expecting a similar outcome this time around, as the odds for Nigeria vs. Benin are clearly in favor of the hosts. You can find odds for the match at Bet365, and opening an account with the bookmaker takes very little time.
Nigeria – Benin Tip
To secure a direct ticket to the 2026 World Cup, both teams must win. They can hardly count on help from Rwanda, which is playing at the same time in South Africa, as the Rwandan team has nothing to play for in its final match against “Bafana bafana” from a sporting point of view and is considered to be less strong anyway.
However, the situation is even more difficult for the home team, as a draw would at least secure second place for the visitors, which could also lead to World Cup qualification via a roundabout route, while the Nigerians would miss out on the World Cup in this case. For the three-time World Cup quarter-finalists and three-time Africa Cup winners, this would of course be a huge embarrassment.
Coach Éric Chelle’s home team will be counting on their home advantage and, above all, their top striker Victor Osimhen in the match. However, the attacker has only been available again for a few weeks after an injury and has looked a little rusty recently. On the other hand, the top scorer of the last edition of the Süper Lig has the upcoming opponent in his sights.
Osimhen scored in the last two matches against Benin! The visitors, for their part, will be highly motivated. They have a historic chance to qualify for the World Cup for the first time, and in Gernot Rohr they have a very experienced coach who is particularly knowledgeable about African soccer. In addition, the “Ecureuils” are unbeaten in their last three away games in World Cup qualifying, and their only defeat on the road against the other top team in Group C, South Africa, was a narrow 1-2 loss.
What’s more, the visitors have a striker in top form in Aiyegun Tosin. The professional from Lorient in France’s Ligue 1 scored the decisive goal in the 1-0 win in Rwanda a few days ago. This confirmed his strong form in the French league, where Tosin has also scored in half of the last six games! Given this situation, we are opting for the betting odds on an away win in the match between Nigeria and Benin, including a handicap of +2 goals for the visitors.
