NIGERIA VS ICELAND(STATS)

NIGERIA VS ICELAND STATS

Iceland already have a point in the bag while Nigeria is pointless with a two-goal deficit. History reminds us that these usurpers from Iceland started the same way at Euro 2016 – with a hard-fought 1-1 result against Portugal, who went on to win the tournament.

History for Nigeria’s Super Eagles is that they have never qualified from a World Cup group after losing or drawing their first match. Can these Eagles then rewrite history? Argentina’s 3-0 capitulation on Thursday gives both countries a good chance of making it out of the group; so who will grab the bull by the horns?

There will be more Icelandic supporters in the Volgograd Arena, making the Viking clap resound; but weather reports indicate the temperature could between 32 and 35 degrees Celcius, a part that could help the Super Eagles.

Head to head

Never met before!

Current Form [Last 5 matches]

Iceland	Nigeria
Mexico           3 – 0    Iceland	Nigeria            0 – 2    Serbia
Iceland          1 – 3    Peru	Nigeria            1 – 1    Congo DR
Iceland          2 – 3    Norway	England         2 – 1    Nigeria
Iceland          2 – 2    Ghana	Nigeria            0 – 1    Czech Rep.
Argentina       1 – 1    Iceland	Croatia          2 – 0    Nigeria

Three duels to watch

Gylfi Sigurdsson v Wilfred Ndidi

The Everton man will move around – having been given the license to roam. He will also be the man on all the set pieces, for he can deliver precisely and accurately. Ndidi can tackle but he can also be drawn into giving away cheap fouls. The Leicester man must rein in his instincts.

Aron Gunnarsson v Mikel Obi

Mikel could not work any magic against the Croats but he should have more time on the ball against Iceland even though Gunnarsson will be on his case as soon as he moves into the offensive third.

Birkir Bjarnason v Abdullahi Shehu

Two hard workers are expected to collide on Nigeria’s right flank if Rohr does not change Shehu for Tyronne Ebuehi. Where the right-back was not offensive against the Croats, he would have to put in more of a forward shift against an Iceland side that would be more defensively committed.

Notable stats after the first match

Stats/Country	Iceland	Nigeria
Tackles	18	7
Pass Accuracy	0.67	0.84
Distance Covered	105km	101km

Referee in charge: 39-year-old American based in New Zealand – Matthew Conger, will be the centre referee. Conger has the distinction of having been named New Zealand’s best referee in 2017.