France and Nigeria meet in the second round of the 2014 World Cup on Monday at the Nacional in Brasilia. France finished in first place in Group E with a convincing performance to propel itself into the second round while Nigeria just barely squeezed into the knockout round by taking second place in its bracket narrowly beating out Bosnia Herzegovina. The winner of this match will take on the winner of Germany vs. Algeria in the quarter finals.
France has looked good thus far in the cup with Forward Karim Benzema leading the French side in scoring with three goals and two assists. The French midfield is led by the duo of Antoine Griezeman and Paul Pogba who have fed Benzema throughout the tournament..
Nigeria on the other hand is loaded with talent which includes Midfielder Peter Odemwingie, who has one goal in the tournament thus far and Defender Joseph Yobo who has over 100 caps for his country. Nigeria has never made it out of the second round in World Cup play.
In goal, both sides bring quality and experience into the nets as Nigeria’s Vincent Enyeama, has 94 caps for his country while s Les Blues keeper and Captain Hugo Lloris is one of the top keepers in the world.
One unfortunate distraction that the Nigerian squad has had to deal with the past few days, is that there has been a controversy over unpaid bonus’s to the players with a possible players strike in the cards. The situation has been bubbling over that even Nigerian President Johnathan Goodluck had to step in and help sort matters. How much of a mental effect that will play on the Super Eagles is the question.
"We need to defend well, take our chances up front and learn from the Argentina game," Nigerian wingman, Ahmed Musa said. "In the second round, it's winner takes all. I know with hard work and God's support we shall make history. But prayers without hard work is nothing, so we need to be at our best against France to make it happen."
The game is set to kick off at 12:00 PM EST at the Nacional in Brasilia It can be seen on ESPN and in Spanish on Univision. If you want to live stream the match, simply go to WatchESPN here and here for a live stream in Spanish.
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