The poor condition of the pitch at Estádio Nacional 24 de Setembro has become another talking point ahead of Nigeria’s AFCON 2027 qualifier in Bissau, with Guinea-Bissau coach Emiliano Té acknowledging the problem after Eric Chelle had earlier refused to make much of the surface, Footynaija.com reports.
Nigeria arrive in Bissau with three points from their opening Group L match after coming from behind to beat Madagascar 2-1 in Uyo. Guinea-Bissau also won their first game, beating Tanzania 2-0 away from home. Both sides therefore go into Tuesday’s meeting level on points.
The Super Eagles had their final training session at the match venue on Monday, with rain falling during the session. Chelle had already said he did not want to label the pitch good or bad before seeing how his players could work on it.
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The surface has nevertheless become a noticeable part of the buildup, particularly after Chelle also spoke about how little time Nigeria had to prepare between their two qualifiers.
Guinea-Bissau coach speaks on the pitch
Té has now offered the home side’s perspective, admitting that the playing surface is not ideal but arguing that there is little the hosts can do about it.
“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,” he said at the pre-match interview.
The Guinea-Bissau coach also pointed to the weather as another factor affecting the surface.
“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,” Té said.
