Nigeria vs South Africa Prediction: The Amapiano Derby

Dubbed the Amapiano derby during the CAF Africa Cup of Nation, Nigeria and South Africa share a lot of history on and off the pitch. The house genre of Amapiano was made in South Africa and was adopted by Nigeria.

When this match was played in the CAF Africa Cup of Nations, it was about more than just football. That match ended disappointingly for South Africans everywhere, as Nigeria won the tie on penalties after a heartfelt 90 minutes plus extra time. The occasion is not as big, but the perspective on the ground is, that of a derby, a clash of two great footballing nations.

Here are few markets to consider adding to your bet slip...

 Team News

Burnley sticker Lyle Foster returns to national team duty after mission out on the CAF Africa Cup of Nations. The 36-man preliminary squad some notable new names, with Thabo Moloisane, Devin Titus and Relebohile Mofokeng receiving their first national team call ups. New faces mean that some familiar faces were cut from the preliminary squad to make room for the names above.

Among the players cut from the preliminary squad, the two Kaizer Chiefs stars Bruce Bvuma and Given Msimango were dropped again. Innocent Male, Thabiso Monyane, Evidence Makgopa and Tupelo Loki were also cut. Pirates fans will be excited to see their man of the moment Relebohile Mofokeng and Patrick Maswanganyi in the final 23-man squad alongside regulars, Themba Zwane, Percy Tau and Taboho Mokoena.

Nigeria's assistant coach resigns ahead of their clash with South Africa. This headline, would spook even the most seasoned fans. According to multiple sources, Daniel Amokachi, who was the first assistant to Finidi George, resigned from his position in the technical days, before this upcoming clash with South Africa.  Super Eagles fans can look forward to the return of German born Maduka Okoye.

Match Odds

The odds on Nigeria winning this Match are at 12/25, 29/10 for the draw and 28/5 for a South Africa win. the odds on total goals being over 2.5 are sitting at 59/50 which could happen, giving the personnel on each of the squad lists.

3 Way - South Africa 6/1

Encounters between these two teams never disappoint. Since 2004, they have met 11 times with Nigeria winning seven of the eleven meetings, drawing four and losing one to South Africa. Despite those disappointing numbers South Africa has managed to score 11 goals against Nigeria in that time giving them a goal average of 0.9 per match. Nigeria on the other hand has found the back of the net 23 times, giving them a goal per game average of 1.9 per match. The last time South Africa won against Nigeria was in 2017 when they met in CAF Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers.

When looking at recent form, South Africa looks the better side amongst the two teams. the have two draws and no losses in their last three matches. Nigeria has two losses in their last three matches and only one win, that came against Ghana in an international friendly. South Africa will have to keep in mind that Nigeria has been the first team on the score sheet in seven out of their last eight fixtures. The Super Eagles went on to win the first half in five out of their last seven matches, and they have no losses against South Africa in their last three encounters. However, it is not all doom and gloom for Bafana Bafana. They can look to the fact that they have managed to find the back of the net against Nigeria in all six of their last six meetings.

It is clearly going to be a highly contested fixture with the winner taking control of Group C in the World Cup Qualifiers CAF. South Africa suffered a defeat against Rwanda on match day 2 of the qualifiers. Nigeria are still to register their first win or loss in this group. I will be backing South Africa for this one.

Check out our other Soccer Betting Predictions here.