Posted by Kickoff.com on
Nigeria's chances of qualifying for next year's World Cup in Germany suffered a serious setback on Saturday after closest rivals Angola forced them to a 1-1 draw at the Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano.
Nigeria 1 - Angola 1
Nigeria's chances of qualifying for next year's World Cup in Germany suffered a serious setback on Saturday after closest rivals Angola forced them to a 1-1 draw at the Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano.
Both Angola and Nigeria have thus recorded 15 points from seven matches but the Angolans are on top on the head-to-head rule after they won the first encounter between the two teams 1-0 last year.
Nigeria got off to a dream start after only four minutes when skipper Austin ‘Jay Jay' Okocha buried away a free kick on the edge of the Angolan box.
However, as the game wore on the visiting Angolans began to stamp their authority in the game as they took control of the midfield and took the game to their opponents.
Playmaker Figueireio tested Vincent Enyeama in the Nigerian goal on 35 minutes just after Flavio shot had narrowly missed target.
The Angolans continued to probe for an equalizing goal in the second half and after 15 minutes they were awarded a freekick outside the Eagles vital area and Figueireio made no mistake to draw the Palancas Negras level.
The next round of qualifying matches will be played in September with Angola at home to Gabon while Nigeria play away to Algeria.
The winner of the group will qualify for the 2006 World Cup while the top three teams feature in the African Nations Cup in Egypt in January.