AFCON 2025: Victor Ikpeba Outlines What Super Eagles Must Do to Qualify for Tournament in Morocco

• The qualification draws for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations have been announced by the continent's football governing body
• The Super Eagles of Nigeria have been placed in Group D alongside Libya, East African nation, Rwanda, and the Republic of Benin
• Ex-Nigeria forward, Victor Ikpeba, has shared his insights on what the Super Eagles need to do to secure their place in the Morocco event

The draws for the qualification series of the 2025 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) were recently unveiled by the continent's football governing body, and the Super Eagles of Nigeria were handed a tricky path.

The Nigerian team, seeded at the top of Group D, must first conquer Libya, then contend with Rwanda, and finally navigate a challenging match against the Republic of Benin—a team they recently faced in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification series.

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However, amid the mixed reactions to the draw, former striker of the Nigerian team, Victor Ikpeba, has disclosed what he thinks the Super Eagles must do to secure a place at the 2025 edition of the AFCON.

Ikpeba discusses Super Eagles AFCON qualification

In an interview as reported by Score Nigeria, the 51-year-old emphasised the need for the Super Eagles to start their qualification campaign strongly to avoid the struggles they currently face in their FIFA World Cup qualification group.

"The team has to fight; they have to step up because this is not an easy group," warned the 1997 African Player of the Year.

"Benin, for example, taught us some lessons just last month. The players have to put Nigeria first because some of them still don’t know what it takes to play for the national team.

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Getting decent results in the AFCON qualifiers will most certainly help team confidence going into the World Cup qualifiers next year."

According to a report from CAF, the six-match qualifying series will be spread over the FIFA windows from September through November, with two matches in each seven-day window.

Winners and runners-up will qualify from each group, except the one containing Morocco, who will participate to gain competitive match practice. Morocco automatically qualifies as hosts; hence, only the best-placed of the other three teams in their section will secure a spot.

The AFCON in Morocco will take place from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026.

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Sports Brief in another report stated former Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh, overlooked Victor Osimhen from his selection for the current best player of the Nigerian team.

The 49-year-old selected other attackers from the West African giants whom he considers superior to the Napoli forward at present in terms of their performance