18th February, 2016
The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations Day 3 qualifying match between the Super Eagles of Nigeria and the Pharaohs of Egypt will now take place at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna on Friday, 25 March.
This decision followed a mail sent to the NFF by the Confederation of African Football on Wednesday that Nigeria should endeavor to make room for “a minimum of two full days of rest between the two matches.”
Although CAF had given Nigeria the latitude to pick any day between 23 – 26 March for the Day 3 clash, and handed Egypt the option of picking any day from 26 – 29 March for the Day 4 encounter, the continental body appealed to the NFF to pick a new date that would ensure two full days of rest ahead of the second match.
NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, said on Thursday: “We have now moved the match forward by 24 hours, so we will play on Friday, 25 March and Saturday, 26 March will serve as the day for the two teams to travel, while 27 and 28 March will be rest days before the return leg on Tuesday, 29 March. “