Super Eagles expected to win

Confidence is again on the high for Nigeria after two solid showings against Republic of Ireland and France ahead of Sunday's World Cup qualifier against visiting Harambee Stars of Kenya.

This was contrary to fears expressed by some of the country's top officials that these two games were coming too close to a crucial World Cup qualifying match.

The on-form Irish could only force a weakened Nigerian team to a 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage last month and days later, a largely experimental Eagles team recorded a heart-warming 1-0 victory over 1998 world champions France in Saint-Etienne.

It was not just the results of these games that caught the eye, but also the whole-hearted commitment by several players like Olubayo Adefemi, Sam Sodje, Michael Eneramo and Dele Adeleye, who have been on the wings of the national team. Former Lobi Stars striker Eneramo was top scorer for Tunisian champions Esperance with 18 goals this past season and showed he can crack it at the highest level with a superb finish against the Irish.

His arrival on the international scene comes at a time when Nigeria are on the lookout for a big striker following the absence of injured Everton star, Yakubu Aiyegbeni. Nigeria boast a great record against the Kenyans, but the country's officials are leaving nothing to chance to ensure a big home win on Sunday and so have offered an additional $200,000 win-bonus, if the Eagles can ship three goals without reply past their East African opponents.

The setting is certainly a lot better than it was in March when the team barely survived in Mozambique against a fired-up home side.

Defensive Kenya Fight For Respect

The Harambee Stars got their World Cup qualification off to a poor start in March when they lost 2-1 to Tunisia in Nairobi. Since then, German coach Antoine Hey has come under heavy fire. His problems were further compounded when he clashed with some of the local clubs over signing of a commitment form for their players in the national team.

Hey has promised to get a result in Abuja, but going by past records between the two countries, this will really be an uphill task for his team. The last time, they had visited Nigeria in 2002, they let in three goals, the same scoreline in 1997.

"It will not be easy against Nigeria but with a good game plan and some luck, we hope for a surprise," said Hey.The Kenyans' build-up for the Nigeria game was not helped also by a cash crunch, which forced Hey to suspend training this week as he and other officials shopped for funds to settle the players' allowances.

A proposed training tour of Germany was called off because of this reason and after they failed to play a warm-up against Malawi, the Harambee Stars had to settle for test games against local clubs.

However, on the bright side, Norway-based goalkeeper Arnold Origi is expected to ensure that some of the goalkeeping blunders by Noah Ayuko, which cost Kenya all three points in Nairobi in March are not repeated.

Kenyan sports journalist, James Wokabi, predicted: "Hey has not won a match in Africa, whether with Liberia or Lesotho. He has also left out Kenya's best defender, Edgar Ochieng. I will be happy with anything better than a 3-0 loss."