{"id":884907,"date":"2026-01-14T08:12:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/14\/nigeria-vs-morocco-eric-chelle-calls-hosts-biggest-test-as-super-eagles-chase-afcon-2025-final\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T08:12:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T14:12:11","slug":"nigeria-vs-morocco-eric-chelle-calls-hosts-biggest-test-as-super-eagles-chase-afcon-2025-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/14\/nigeria-vs-morocco-eric-chelle-calls-hosts-biggest-test-as-super-eagles-chase-afcon-2025-final\/","title":{"rendered":"Nigeria vs Morocco: Eric Chelle calls hosts \u2018biggest test\u2019 as Super Eagles chase AFCON 2025 final"},"content":{"rendered":"

Soccer <\/p>\n

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MARRAKECH, MOROCCO – JANUARY 9: Coach Eric Chelle of Nigeria during the Africa Cup of Nations AFCON Pre-Match Day at the Le Grand Stade on January 9th, 2026 in Marrakech, Morocco. Photo by Segun Ogunfeyitimi Copyright: xshengolpixsx<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Super Eagles<\/a> head coach Eric Chelle has vowed that Nigeria<\/a> will \u2018give everything’ when they face hosts Morocco in Wednesday\u2019s Africa Cup of Nations<\/a> semi-final, as his in-form side attempt to reach a second consecutive AFCON final, Soccernet.ng reports<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Nigeria and Morocco will trade<\/a> tackles inside the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, with the winner booking a place in the final of the 2025 tournament.<\/p>\n

Few tipped Nigeria to reach this stage, yet Chelle\u2019s men arrive as the competition\u2019s most consistent team, having won all five of their matches so far.<\/p>\n

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Super Eagles. Photo Credit: CAF X<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Along the way, the Super Eagles have eliminated two North African heavyweights in Tunisia and Algeria<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But despite that flawless run, Nigeria will once again start as underdogs.<\/p>\n

Morocco are unbeaten, backed by a fervent home crowd, and still boast the spine of the team that reached the semi-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. For Eric Chelle<\/a>, this represents a challenge even greater than anything his side have faced so far.<\/p>\n

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Coach Eric Chelle and Moses Simon of Nigeria. Photo by Segun Ogunfeyitimi Copyright: xshengolpixsxIMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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\u201cAlgeria was the biggest test,\u201d Chelle said at his pre-match press conference as monitored by Soccernet.ng.<\/p>\n

\u201cMorocco is the biggest test. Every game is the biggest test for this team because the expectation is so big.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are ready for this game, for all of the games that we play in this tournament. We try to play every game like the last and we will give everything as we have given everything.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have to check my players, how they are physically because you know we play three days before. We have to rest and after I will judge how is my team and then we can talk about the game plan.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Super Eagles. Photo by Segun Ogunfeyitimi Copyright: xshengolpixsxIMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Get Our Sports News First \u2013 Join Our WhatsApp Channel Now!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Soccer Nigeria vs Morocco: A tactical clash for the ages<\/h2>\n

After a bruising quarter-final against Algeria and successive journeys between Fez and Rabat, Nigeria\u2019s technical crew are placing huge emphasis on recovery and physical freshness. The final tactical plan, Chelle insists, will depend on how well his players respond.<\/p>\n

The Franco-Malian coach even suggested<\/a> Nigeria may be willing to surrender possession to Morocco.<\/p>\n

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\u201cMaybe we’ll let them have the ball and wait.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Coach Eric Chelle of Nigeria. Photo by Segun Ogunfeyitimi Copyright: xshengolpixsxIMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It is a calculated idea. Morocco have, at times, struggled to break down teams that defend in a deep, compact block. Nigeria, with their pace and power in transition, may look to strike when the spaces appear.<\/p>\n

Despite the fatigue, Chelle remains confident in the strength and balance of his squad. The attacking trio of Victor Osimhen<\/a>, Akor Adams, and Ademola Lookman<\/a> continues to provide Nigeria with menace and unpredictability, while Alex Iwobi\u2019s intelligence and composure remain central to the team\u2019s structure.<\/p>\n

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Photo by Photo by Vincent Kamto Copyright: xVincentxKAMTOxIMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There is also recent history at stake.<\/p>\n

Nigeria reached the final of the 2023 AFCON, only to lose to hosts C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire. This time, the three-time African champions are determined not to fall short again as they chase a first continental title since 2013.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\"<!--Imhonlamhen Eronmhonsele” src=”https:\/\/soccernet.ng\/app\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DSC_0327-copy-150×150.jpg” height=”80″ width=”80″>\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\tImhonlamhen Eronmhonsele\t\t\t\t<\/a>
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\n\t\t\t\tA lifelong fan of Arsenal and the Super Eagles, Imhonlamhen is a football writer and editor at Soccernet.ng, where his journey as a journalist began more than six years ago. Since then, he has helped shape the platform\u2019s editorial voice and guided it toward some of its proudest milestones. <\/p>\n

With a background in Engineering and further training in journalism and digital media, Imhons brings both precision and passion to his storytelling. His love for football runs deep, but he also follows boxing, chess, and athletics with equal curiosity.\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>Imhonlamhen Eronmhonsele<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Soccer MARRAKECH, MOROCCO – JANUARY 9: Coach Eric Chelle of Nigeria during the Africa Cup of Nations AFCON Pre-Match Day at the Le Grand Stade on January 9th, 2026 in Marrakech, Morocco. Photo by Segun Ogunfeyitimi Copyright: xshengolpixsx Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has vowed that Nigeria will \u2018give everything’ when they face hosts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":884908,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45386,27096,2005],"tags":[45385,15956],"class_list":{"0":"post-884907","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-morocco","8":"category-nigeria","9":"category-soccer","10":"tag-morocco","11":"tag-nigeria"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884907","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=884907"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/884907\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/884908"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=884907"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=884907"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=884907"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}