New venue, Austrian refs named for Nigeria, Algeria friendly

THERE has been a change of venues for the friendly between the Super Eagles and Algeria’s Fennecs, Naija Times reports.

The game was initially scheduled for the compact Jacques Lemans Arena but it will now be held at the bigger Worthersee Stadion in Klangenfurt. 

The new venue is also said to have a better pitch. 

The change in venue was at the request of the Algeria Football Association.

The Worthersee Stadion has a 30,000 capacity and was rebuilt in 2007. 

 It was initially built in 1960 and demolished in 2005. Meanwhile, Austrian match officials have been appointed to oversee the game. 

Referee Manuel Schüttengruber will be assisted by Roland Brandner and Sara Telek. 

The match, a replay of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations semi-final which Algeria won 1-0, is scheduled to kick off at 7.30pm Nigerian time on Friday. 

Four days later, the Super Eagles will be up against Tunisia at the Jacques Lemans Arena, also in Austria. 

Nigeria defeated Tunisia 1-0 in the 2019 AFCON third-place play-off.