The Super Eagles have been handed a tough draw against the Pharaohs as well as Tanzania and Chad in the qualifying Group G in a draw held on Wednesday
Nigeria have been drawn with Egypt, Tanzania and Chad in Group G of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying series after a draw held in Cairo on Wednesday.
The Super Eagles, three-time winners, will challenge the Pharaohs, record seven-time winners, for a ticket to play at Gabon 2017.
The winners of each of the 13 groups will pick automatic qualifying tickets while the two best second-placed teams would join the train to Gabon.
Notwithstanding their illustrious credentials, both Nigeria and Egypt failed to qualify for the 2015 tournament held in Equatorial Guinea, with Egypt’s last showing being at Angola 2010 where they won their record-extending seventh title.
Both countries have had mixed fortunes internationally over the years. Nigeria have played at five World Cups and reached the round of 16 in Brazil last year.
On the contrary, Egypt have not qualified for the World Cup since playing at Italia ’90 even though they have enjoyed more success than any other team in the continental showpiece, winning three titles successively between 2006 and 2010.
The other teams in the group, Tanzania and Chad, will be expected to make up the numbers.
In other pairings, Tunisia, Togo, Liberia and Djibouti are in Group A while DR Congo, Angola, Central African Republic and Madagascar make up Group B.
In Group C are Mali, Equatorial Guinea, Benin and South Sudan while Group D comprises of Burkina Faso, Uganda, Botswana and Comoros Islands.
2012 champions Zambia, Congo, Kenya and Guinea Bissau make up Group E while Cape Verde, Morocco, Libya and Sao Tome make up Group F.
2015 finalists Ghana, Mozambique, Rwanda and Mauritius are in Group H as defending champions Cote d’Ivoire, Sudan, Sierra Leone and hosts Gabon will slug it out in Group I.
Points in Gabon’s matches will not count towards the final tally.
Group J has Algeria, Ethiopia, Lesotho and Seychelles while Group K will see Senegal, Niger, Namibia and Burundi compete for a place in the tournament.
Guinea, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Swaziland are in Group I while giants Cameroon, South Africa, Gambia and Mauritania make up Group J.
The qualifying rounds will commence in June 2015.
