Story by George Flood
18 Oct
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Nigeria have discovered their next opponents with their World Cup qualification hopes still very much alive.
The Super Eagles brushed aside previous leaders Benin – managed by former Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr – 4-0 in their final Group C clash on Tuesday night, with star striker Victor Osimhen netting a hat-trick at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo.
The commanding victory was not quite enough for Nigeria to snatch top spot in the group and automatic qualification for next summer’s World Cup in North America, with South Africa beating Rwanda 3-0 in Mbombela to finish a point clear at the summit and reach their first finals since hosting the event in 2010.
However, a fourth goal in stoppage time from Brentford midfielder Frank Onyeka would prove crucial as Eric Chelle’s side eventually finished second and sealed a spot as one of the four best runners-up in African qualifying, narrowly edging out Burkina Faso from Group A on goal difference after the two sides finished level on points.
Burkina Faso will feel hard done by, with the results against the sixth-placed teams in each group discounted to determine the four best runners-up after Eritrea – initially placed in Group A – withdrew from qualifying before playing a game.
Those four best runners-up will now enter a play-off to determine who will be CAF’s sole representative at the wide inter-confederation World Cup play-offs, which will be held in March 2026 in Mexico.
Alongside Nigeria, who did not make the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Gabon reached the play-offs as the best of the rest after finishing second behind Ivory Coast in Group F, beating Burundi 2-0 at home in their final qualifier but seeing their rivals brush aside Kenya to take top spot.
Also in are the DR Congo, who were runners-up to Senegal in Group B, edging past Sudan in their final game but seeing the leaders dispatch of Mauritania 4-0.
The trio are joined by Cameroon, who finished second in Group D ahead of Libya after a pair of final goalless draws for the duo and behind Cape Verde, who over the weekend became the second-smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup – behind only Iceland – after beating Eswatini 3-0.
The fixtures for the CAF play-offs are determined by FIFA’s world rankings as of the next update on October 23, with the highest-ranked team playing the lowest-ranked team and the second highest-ranked team facing the second lowest-ranked team.
As things stand as of the latest update on September 18, and with ESPN reporting that the ranking order will not change, Nigeria are the current highest-ranked team of the four at 45, while Gabon are the lowest at 79.
That means the two teams will face each other in a one-legged play-off semi-final tie to take place on neutral territory in Morocco on November 13.
Return: Gabon should have captain and star striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang back to face Nigeria in Morocco next month (AFP via Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Cameroon will face the DR Congo in the other one-legged semi-final showdown in Morocco on the same date, with those two sides currently ranked at 52nd and 60th in the world respectively.
The winners of those two matches will then play each other in the final – also in Morocco – on November 16, with the winners of that match advancing through to the inter-confederation play-offs in Mexico in March.
Gabon – who have never previously qualified for the World Cup – should be boosted by the return of captain and talisman Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who served a one-match suspension against Burundi after his red card for two bookable offences that followed a four-goal haul against The Gambia in Nairobi last week.
Burkina Faso, Niger, Madagascar, Uganda and Namibia were the five group runners-up who did not make the CAF play-offs, with Egypt, Senegal, South Africa, Cape Verde, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Algeria, Tunisia and Ghana all qualifying directly for the World Cup finals as group winners.
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