Ed Dove picks out five standout fixtures to watch during Africa’s road to Qatar

Cape Verde vs Nigeria
While the Super Eagles can be broadly happy with their group stage draw, they must be wary of Cape Verde, who recently proved that size doesn’t matter when international football is concerned.

At the 2019 WAFU Cup, the islanders eliminated Nigeria’s home-based side from the plate competition, bloodying the regional giants’ noses at the West African showpiece.

They may be one of Africa’s smallest nations, but Cape Verde have excelled at downing some of the continent’s giants in recent years; they know how to be resilient, organised and their unity is admirable.

Their recent 0-0 draw away in Cameroon to open the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign was a blueprint of how they’ll perform away from home, and in front of their own fans, they’ll be confident that they can spring a surprise.

Cameroon vs Ivory Coast
The Ivory Coast were the Pot Two team that all other nations will have been desperate to avoid in Tuesday’s draw.

The Elephants weren’t among the top 10 seeds, but their immense wealth of talent and an encouraging showing at the 2019 Nations Cup meant that they were a lurking menace for any of the top seeds.


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