Confederations Cup: Tahiti seek upset against Nigeria • kick off: 8pm

Tahiti will play their first ever FIFA Confederations Cup game against Nigeria in Belo Horizonte on Monday, and should they win would have caused a major upset in world football.

Nigeria are unbeaten in 17 games since June last year, adding the African crown to their success. Tahiti on the other hand have only played two international games this year, winning one against Solomon Islands and losing the other against New Caledonia.

The side, who qualified for the tournament after winning thez Oceania Nations Cup, face a Super Eagles team surrounded by controversy and who only arrived in Brazil on Saturday.

Nigeria’s participation was brought into question after their players refused to get on the plane from their hotel in Namibia on Thursday following disputes over bonuses.

The team had requested $10,000 and $5,000 for each player for their win against Kenya and draw against Namibia respectively in their World Cup qualifiers. They had threatened to strike when this was turned down.

However, with the issue now resolved, Stephen Keshi’s squad found their way to Brazil on Saturday and had their first training session in the host city on Sunday.

Tahiti will face a tough task when they come up against Nigeria, as the Africa Cup of Nations champions have gone unbeaten in their last 17 games.

However, with the Super Eagles seemingly struggling for goals, Tahiti will hope to limit them with their strong defence – which includes star player Nicholas Valler – and potentially grab a goal on the break.

Veteran Marama Vahirua – a former France under-21 international – joins up with his country for the first time and manager Eddy Etaeta will be hoping his decision to select the Nancy striker pays off.

Meanwhile, Super Eagles forward Brown Ideye, who scored 21 goals for Dynamo Kiev last season, could be key to Nigeria’s chances, with AFCON top-scorer Emmanuel Emenike and Chelsea’s Victor Moses both unavailable.

Glo wishes Eagles luck

One of the sponsors of the Super Eagles, Globacom, has urged the team and the technical crew to shrug off the challenges they encountered in their build-up to the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil and focus on the task ahead.

The Eagles, who are the African representatives at the global competition, missed a scheduled flight to Brazil on Thursday after playing a 1-1 draw with Namibia’s Brave Warriors in a World Cup 2014 qualifier.

Nigeria kick off their campaign in Group B with Tahiti on Monday, before meating Uruguay on June 20 and later Spain on June 23.

The Company said it was optimistic that the Super Eagles would brave the odds and do well against Tahiti.

PUNCH