Sudan and Niger will get things underway in Group F, as the Falcons of Jediane welcome the Menas to Juba Olympic Stadium for an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Wednesday.
Both sides will be meeting for the first time in a competitive match, as they look to take a step towards participation in the prestigious tournament.
Match preview
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Sudan will begin their quest for an appearance at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco after missing out on the last edition in Ivory Coast.
The Falcons of Jediane's last qualified for the tournament in 2021 when it was hosted by Cameroon after missing out on four consecutive editions before that.
One-time winners of the competition after triumphing in 1970, Sudan have struggled to match that performance, with only managing to reach the quarter-finals once since then (in 2012).
Head coach, James Kwesi Appiah, appointed in September 2023, has led the side to a tremendous start in the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign, as they currently top Group B with 10 points, two points ahead of African powerhouse Senegal.
The coach will hope his side can translate this form into the AFCON qualifiers, having won their last three competitive matches and lost just one of their last eight matches across all competitions.
The Falcons of Jediane are also unbeaten in five of their last six home games — claiming three wins and two draws — with a 3-0 defeat against Mauritania on June 20 being the exception.
Niger will be playing their first match since a 1-1 draw against Burkina Faso in a friendly game during the international break in March.
The Menas were awarded all three points against Congo who failed to show up for the World Cup qualifiers in June, and Eritrea who were supposed to be their next opponents, withdrew from the World Cup qualifying series.
A 1-0 against Senegal in their first outing of the year was followed by another 2-1 defeat to Togo, with Niger failing to win any of their three matches so far this year.
Zaki Badou's men will begin the 2025 AFCON qualifying series, looking to appear at the prestigious tournament for the third time in history – previously making it to the competition in 2012 and 2013.
The Menas have lost nine of their last 12 matches across all competitions, failing to win any of the last three while conceding 18 goals and scoring just eight since January 2023.
However, Zaki's side won their last competitive game – a 2-1 win over Zambia in the second match of their 2026 World Cup qualifying series in November 2023.
Team News
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Sudan are expected to field a lineup similar to their last match in June, with Bakhit Khamis and Mustafa Karshoum anchoring the defense, while Mohamed Mustafa mans the goal.
Mohamed Eisa will likely lead the attack in this clash, flanked by Yasir Mozamil, who scored in their last game and Seif Teiri.
Niger selected a 26-player squad for both of their qualifiers this month, without any unexpected choices from coach Zaki.
Ghanaian-born defender Najeeb Yakubu, a key figure for the team, is expected to be central to the defense.
Boubacar Djibrill Goumey, who scored Niger's goal in their last competitive match against Zambia, will likely be included in the starting lineup, but Amadou Moutari, the other scorer, was not named to the squad.
Sudan possible starting lineup:
Mustafa; Khamis, Saeed, Karshoum, Zayed; Abuaagla, Adil, Mahmoud; Teiri, Eisa, Mozamil
Niger possible starting lineup:
Djibo; Yakubu, Katkore, Massoudi, Alhassane; Moumouni, Diabate; Oumarou, Moussa, Djibrilla; Goumey
We say: Sudan 2-1 Niger
Sudan are enjoying a fine run of form and have demonstrated their capabilities in the World Cup qualifiers, remaining unbeaten to date.
Niger, conversely, are experiencing a difficult period and enter this match on a poor run. Given the disparity in form, we anticipate Sudan to have too much for their opponents to handle.
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