By Dayo Awoniyi
Nigeria’s Super Eagles will kick-start their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) preparations with a high-profile friendly against seven-time champions Egypt on December 14 in Cairo, according to NigeriaFootballNG.
The team will open a closed training camp in the Egyptian capital on December 10, where head coach Eric Chelle is expected to fine-tune tactics, assess player fitness, and build cohesion ahead of the continental showdown in Morocco.
The clash with the Pharaohs is viewed as a crucial simulation for Nigeria’s Group C meeting with Tunisia—another disciplined and physically imposing North African side.
Nigeria open their AFCON 2025 campaign on December 23 against Tanzania, before facing Uganda in their final group fixture.
The tournament kicks off on December 21, with hosts Morocco facing Comoros in the opening match.
With back-to-back FIFA World Cup qualification failures in 2022 and 2026 still stinging, and after finishing runners-up to host nation Côte d’Ivoire in the last AFCON, the Super Eagles head into Morocco 2025 under significant pressure to deliver.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
