Ahead of the epic encounter with Angola, Jose Peseiro said Stanley Nwabali would undergo a final fitness test to ascertain if he would be available for selection.
In a pre-match press conference on Thursday, monitored by Persecondnews, Peseiro said he has confidence in his second choice, Francis Uzoho, to step in for Nwabali.
Nwabali sustained a knee injury in Nigeria’s AFCON Round of 16 victory against Cameroon on Saturday.
The Chippa United star collided with Cameroon winger Georges Nkoudou during the encounter.
He said: “Today we will take the final decision; this is the last test; if he cannot play, I have confidence in the other goalkeepers.”
Peseiro admitted that “both teams want to reach the semi-final; our team needs to play with maximum commitment, sacrifice, and good spirit.”
Persecondnews recalls that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) gave the Head Coach of the Super Eagles a semifinal target at the 2024 African Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast as a yardstick for contract extension.
Peseiro and his employer, NFF, agreed to an extension of the contract with the Portuguese, assuring Nigerians of a semi-final spot.