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| Photo credit — Guinea-Bissau Coach Emiliano Té |
Guinea-Bissau head coach Emiliano Té has sought to calm talk about the state of the pitch at 24 de Setembro Stadium ahead of Tuesday’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Nigeria.
Both teams head into the Group L meeting with perfect records so far. The hosts earned a solid 2-0 away win over Tanzania, while Nigeria came from behind to beat Madagascar 2-1 in Uyo. The fixture is therefore an early chance for either side to seize control of the group.
The timing of the match has put the playing surface under the spotlight. Guinea-Bissau is in the middle of its rainy season, and heavy downpours can leave the pitch soft, waterlogged, and uneven. Surfaces like this often slow the ball, affect passing accuracy, and make it harder for teams that rely on quick combinations or high pressing.
Nigeria coach Eric Chelle struck a pragmatic note when asked about the conditions. He preferred not to judge the pitch in advance and stressed that his players would simply adapt.
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“I don’t want to say whether the pitch is good or the pitch is bad. We just need to stay focused on our game. We have to manage, and we will see how it is during the training session too before the game,” Chelle said.
Té, who took charge after Luís Boa Morte was dismissed in 2025 following a run of eight straight defeats, was equally matter-of-fact. He acknowledged the surface is far from ideal but said the weather leaves the hosts with limited options.
“We are playing in Africa, and we know that our pitch is not one of the best, but it is what it is. It is what we have, and we cannot do anything about it,” Té told the pre-match press conference. “We also don’t like to play on it the way it is now, but we can’t control that because it is raining and they try their best to make it good.”
This will be the fifth competitive meeting between the two nations. Guinea-Bissau shocked Nigeria with a 1-0 win in Abuja during the 2023 AFCON qualifiers, Mama Baldé scoring the only goal. Nigeria levelled the series in the return leg in Bissau when Moses Simon converted a first-half penalty for a 1-0 victory.
Those previous results show the fixture can be tight. A difficult pitch could further reduce the gap between the sides, potentially favouring a more direct or organised approach over pure technical football. Both coaches will therefore be watching how the surface behaves in the final training sessions before kick-off.
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Beyond the pitch, the match carries clear group implications. A win for either team would put them in a strong position after two rounds, while a draw would keep the race wide open heading into the next window. Nigeria remain favourites on paper, but Guinea-Bissau’s recent away success and home advantage mean the Super Eagles cannot take anything for granted.
As the teams prepare to walk out in Bissau, the focus for both coaching staffs is clear: adapt to whatever conditions they find and concentrate on their own game plans rather than the state of the grass.
Samuel O. Sulaimon is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Naijapiz. He covers News, Sports, Finance, Faiths, Education, Technology.
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