Tunisia striker Mariem Houij is expecting a difficult test when her team face the Super Falcons of Nigeria at the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
The North Africans will take on Justine Madugu’s side in their opening fixture in Casablanca on Sunday.
Houij is aware of Nigeria’s pedigree going into the Group B encounter.
“Nigeria is the most decorated team in the WAFCON. In the last edition, they were eliminated in the semifinals by host nation Morocco, she told CAFonline.
“We beat Botswana in a friendly last year in Tunis. As for Algeria, their playing style is similar to ours, and we’ve won both of our recent matches against them.
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“That said, official matches are completely different from friendlies. Our coaching staff is analysing every opponent in detail to prepare us well.”
Despite the quality of opposition in the group, Houij is adamant they can go far in the competition.
“We want to deliver a strong performance and reach the knockout stages. In the last edition, we made it past the group stage for the first time in 12 years before being knocked out by the defending champions, South Africa,” she added.
“That was a major step forward. Now, we aim to go even further and make our country proud.
“The ideal scenario would be reaching the final. We have a strong, long-standing group that has been reinforced with new players due to the postponement of the 2024 edition to 2025. We’re ready to take on the challenge and give Tunisia—and the entire continent—a memorable performance.”
By Adeboye Amosu
