Ace Football previews the friendly between Portugal and Nigeria and offers team stats, betting tips and the latest odds.
An exciting pre-World Cup friendly awaits at the Estádio José Alvalade on Thursday evening between Portugal and Nigeria.
Portugal are looking to gain some momentum before the 2022 World Cup starts next week, while Nigeria will be out to prove that they can mix it with the best. Cristiano Ronaldo may be out due to illness, but this friendly is sure to be a great game for all fans of football.
Portugal vs Nigeria stats and analysis
Portugal show off very admirable numbers from their past ten matches, as they scored 2.4 goals on average per match. That makes a total of 24 goals, whilst they conceded three goals, for an average of 0.3 per outing, and pulled off seven clean sheets.
Nigeria, on the other hand, have scored 17 goals in their last 10 games, leaving them with an average of 1.7 goals a match. The Super Eagles have also conceded 11 times, for an average of 1.1 goals per game, and kept three clean sheets.
Portugal vs Nigeria Stats
- Portugal have scored in 14 of the last 16 home matches
- Portugal have won 7 of the last 9 home matches while scoring more than 1.5 goals
- Portugal have won 3 of the last 4 home matches without conceding a goal
- Portugal have won 7 of the last 9 home matches
- Portugal have not lost 8 of the last 10 home matches
- In 13 of the last 15 Nigeria away matches the sum of goals was under 3.5
- In 10 of the last 12 Nigeria matches the sum of goals was under 3.5
- Nigeria have lost 5 of the last 6 away matches while scoring less than 1.5 goals
- Nigeria have lost 5 of the last 6 away matches
- Nigeria have lost 5 of the last 6 away matches and the sum of goals was under 3.5
Current form — Portugal v. Nigeria
Portugal with decent results
It has been a rollercoaster couple of weeks for Portugal with performances showing little sign of stability. Portugal are a bit back and forth currently and sadly, they are more back than forth. Against Switzerland, they were beaten by a 1-0 score, before winning 0-4 against the Czech Republic. They were back on loser street last time out in a 0-1 defeat against Spain.
Nigeria on a terrible run
Nigeria go into this encounter hoping to turn a page, as performances in recent matches have been pretty scrappy. The Super Eagles have lost two of their last three games. They started by beating Ghana 2-0 in a World Cup playoff, which they later lost on penalties, before losing 2-1 to Algeria and 2-0 to Costa Rica in friendlies.
Portugal vs Nigeria – Fixture History
There is a first time for everything and this is the first time Nigeria are playing Portugal in a friendly.
Man of the Moment
Cristiano Ronaldo has an upset stomach, so Portugal manager Fernando Santos has ruled the captain out. Players like Bruno Fernandes or Rafael Leao, therefore, may step up to the plate in CR7’s absence. As for Nigeria, Victor Osimhen has withdrawn from the squad after suffering an injury last weekend. Emmanuel Dennis could lead the Super Eagles attack instead.
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