Nigeria Vs Mozambique: Mambas Chase 19th Straight AFCON Game with Goals, Seek First Clean Sheet
The Mambas of Mozambique will be aiming to extend their scoring run to 19 consecutive Africa Cup of Nations matches when they face Nigeria in the Round of 16 in Fès, Morocco.
Despite their attacking consistency, Mozambique are still searching for their first clean sheet in the competition, having conceded in all 18 of their AFCON fixtures to date. Alongside Zimbabwe, they remain the only teams to have let in goals in each of their first 18 matches at the finals.
This year marks a historic breakthrough for Mozambique, who reached the knockout stages for the first time at their sixth attempt, becoming the 33rd nation to achieve the feat.
Their maiden AFCON victory came in the group stage against Gabon, a result that remains their only win in 18 matches (four draws and 13 defeats).
They followed that up with a spirited performance against Cameroon, where they scored first but eventually lost 2–1, the first time they had been defeated after taking the lead in an AFCON match.
Remarkably, Mozambique have never been involved in a goalless draw at the tournament, with all 18 of their matches producing goals.
They have now scored in back-to-back games for the first time in a single edition, and if they find the net against Nigeria, it will mark the first time they have scored in three matches at one AFCON finals.
Their record against West African opposition, however, remains poor. Monday’s clash will be their 10th against a team from the region, with seven defeats and two draws in the previous nine.
They have failed to score in all seven of those losses, only avoiding defeat in 2–2 draws with Benin in 2010 and Ghana in 2023. Against Nigeria, they will be facing a West African opponent for the fourth time in AFCON or AFCON-related competition.
Geny Catamo has been Mozambique’s standout performer, scoring against both Gabon and Cameroon to become the first Mozambican to net in successive AFCON matches.
He now has three goals at the finals, including one from the 2023 tournament, and four goal contributions in five appearances, the most by any Mozambican player.
