Nigeria will play Uganda in an international friendly next Wednesday, according to the Nigeria Football Federation.
The Super Eagles were initially scheduled to host Bolivia at the Akwa Ibom International Stadium before the South Americans canceled their trip to the West African nation, citing “tense political situation” in the country.
Nigeria’s presidential election is rescheduled for 28 March, and analysts have predicted heightened political climate.
“Their excuses do not hold any water,” Fifa match agent, Jairo Pachon, is quoted as saying by theNFF.com, who also disclosed they have asked for compensation from Bolivia for their last ditch withdrawal despite having previously consented to plans.
“Our concentration has been getting a replacement for them (Bolivia) so that the Fifa window we had booked would not go away like that,” he continued.
“However, we are happy to have been able to secure a team with even higher ranking than Bolivia.”
Ranked 74th in the Fifa World Rankings and 20th in the Confederation of African Football (Caf) Zone, the Uganda national team are 18 places above Bolivia in world football’s ladder.
Both Uganda and Nigeria will use next week’s friendly to prepare for the qualifying tournament for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) later in the year. Either team missed out on a place in this year’s finals in Equatorial Guinea.
The Cranes defeated Nigeria 2-1 in Kampala in their last meetings in June 2007 in an Africa Nations Cup qualifier. The friendly match will be the seventh clash of both nations; the East Africans having won on three different occasions top the head-to-head record with a draw and two defeats.
The Uganda game will be immediately followed by a journey to South Africa on Friday to take on the Bafana Bafana in another friendly at the Mbombela stadium, Nelspruit four days later.
