People walk past a football billboard displaying (From L) Portugal’s forward Cristiano Ronaldo, Argentina’s forward Lionel Messi, Germany’s midfielder Mesut Ozil, Brazil’s striker Neymar and Super Eagles midfielder Alex Iwobi./ AFP
All is set for the 2018 edition of the FIFA World Cup which begins today in Russia.
The tournament, which holds every four years, features 32 countries across the world and will take place from June 14 to July 15.
Participating teams are highlighted according to their groups below:
A breakdown of the draws is highlighted below;
Group A – Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Uruguay.
Group B – Spain, Portugal, Morocco, and Iran.
Group C – France, Australia, Peru, and Denmark.
Group D – Nigeria, Argentina, Croatia, and Iceland.
Group E – Brazil, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Serbia.
Group F – Germany, Mexico, Sweden, and South Korea.
Group G – Belgium, Panama, Tunisia and England.
Group H – Poland, Senegal, Colombia, and Japan.
Join us daily as we give you updates on the progress of the Nigerian team and other participating countries here
Nigeria’s Pre-World Cup Matches
On the three occasions, the Super Eagles won their opening matches in the World Cup in 1994, 1998, 2014, and progressed to the Round of 16.
During their preparation ahead of the competition, Nigeria played a series of friendly matches during which they won two, drew one, and lost three.
Nigeria’s midfielder Ogenyi Onazi (2R) shoots but fails to score past Serbia’s defender Matija Nastasic (L) during the International friendly football match between Nigeria and Serbia at the Hive stadium in Barnet, north London on March 27, 2018.DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS / AFP
Sweet victories over Argentina and Poland were followed by defeat by Serbia, a draw with DR Congo and losses to England and the Czech Republic.
The outcomes of some of the friendly, especially against England and Czech Republic, have become worrisome for Nigerians and other concerned individuals.
England’s midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek (L) vies with Nigeria’s midfielder Oghenekaro Etebo (C) and Nigeria’s defender Bryan Idowu (R) during the International friendly football match between England and Nigeria at Wembley stadium in London on June 2, 2018. Ian KINGTON / AFP
Former Eagles Technical Adviser Jo Bonfrere warned the players to avoid playing for individual glory if they must achieve the desired results at the competition.
However, Super Eagles Media Officer, Toyin Ibitoye, urged Nigerians to pray for the team’s success and continue to support them.
Photo: AFP
Thursday, June 14
The host country, Russia will play the opening match against Saudi Arabia by 4:00 pm Nigerian time while the Super Eagles’ first match is against Croatia by 8:00 pm on Saturday.
The 21st #WorldCup kicks off in the magnificent #LuzhnikiStadium only 1⃣6⃣ hours from now…
Media Alert.
Our training session today starts at 10.15am.
It will be open for the first 15 minutes only.
Ahead of our #WorldCup opener vs #CRO on Saturday, we will be departing Essentuki for Kaliningrad at 3.55pm today.#SoarSuperEagles #Team9jaStrong. pic.twitter.com/BY3oRQtpvq
— 🇳🇬 Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) June 14, 2018
🇷🇺vs🇸🇦#RUSKSA pic.twitter.com/hegfLthCNB
— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@FIFAWorldCup) June 14, 2018
The 2018 FIFA #WorldCup is finally here!
Match #1 | #RUSKSA @TeamRussia @SaudiNT_EN#RUS #KSA pic.twitter.com/AK3w6JzeV7
— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@FIFAWorldCup) June 14, 2018
Not3s being made for my #worldcup biz!! 🏆⚽️ pic.twitter.com/LaA2xSq61m
— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) June 14, 2018
We are rivals, but we live football together!
Capture your moment with a rival fan, share it with #RivalHug and win a trip to the FIFA #WorldCup final! pic.twitter.com/4opZDCIIR2
— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@FIFAWorldCup) June 14, 2018
1930: 🇺🇾
1934: 🇮🇹
1938: 🇮🇹
1950: 🇺🇾
1954: 🇩🇪
1958: 🇧🇷
1962: 🇧🇷
1966: 🏴
1970: 🇧🇷
1974: 🇩🇪
1978: 🇦🇷
1982: 🇮🇹
1986: 🇦🇷
1990: 🇩🇪
1994: 🇧🇷
1998: 🇫🇷
2002: 🇧🇷
2006: 🇮🇹
2010: 🇪🇸
2014: 🇩🇪
Retweet if you see your country. #WorldCup
— KITSTOP (@KlTSTOP) June 14, 2018
Check back for more updates…
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2018 FIFA World Cup Set To Kick Off In Russia
