Guinea-Bissau head coach Emiliano Té has played down concerns over the condition of the pitch at the 24 de Setembro Stadium ahead of Tuesday’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying clash with Nigeria.

 The two sides will meet in their second Group L fixture at the 20,000-capacity venue, with both teams looking to maintain their perfect starts to the qualifiers.

 Guinea-Bissau began their campaign with an impressive 2-0 away victory over Tanzania, while Nigeria secured a 2-1 win against Madagascar in Uyo.

 Concerns over the playing surface have emerged largely because of the timing of the fixture, with Guinea-Bissau currently experiencing its rainy season. Persistent rainfall can leave the pitch waterlogged and uneven, potentially affecting ball movement and causing the turf to deteriorate under sustained use.

 The Super Eagles are aware of the potentially challenging conditions, but head coach Eric Chelle has refused to make the pitch a major talking point ahead of the encounter.

 “I don’t want to say whether the pitch is good or the pitch is bad. We just need to stay focused on our game. We have to manage and we will see how it is during the training session too before the game,” Chelle said.

 Té, who took charge of Guinea-Bissau in 2025 following the departure of Luis Boa Morte, acknowledged that the playing surface is not among the best but insisted that the weather conditions are beyond the hosts’ control.

 “We are playing in Africa and we know that our pitch is not one of the best, but it is what it is. It is what we have and we cannot do anything about it,” Té said during his pre-match press conference.

 “We also don’t like to play on it the way it is now, but we can’t control that because it is raining and they try their best to make it good.”

 Tuesday’s encounter will be the fifth meeting between the two nations, with Nigeria having won their last two clashes.

 Guinea-Bissau, however, recorded a notable 1-0 victory over the Super Eagles in Abuja during the first leg of the 2023 AFCON qualifiers. Mama Baldé scored the decisive goal to hand the Djurtus a famous win.

 Nigeria responded in the return fixture in Bissau, with Moses Simon converting a 30th-minute penalty to secure a 1-0 victory.

 Both sides will now meet again with their winning starts to the 2027 AFCON qualifying campaign at stake.