Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the 2026 World Cup Qualification match.
What can you say to a team that no one expects to win? If Niger lose this match, there’s little reason for despair — after all, they're facing a side that finished fourth at the last World Cup.
Niger
Currently ranked 128th in the FIFA rankings, Niger didn’t qualify for AFCON 2023, and they've also missed out on the upcoming edition — finishing below Angola and Sudan in qualifying. For reference, Sudan sit just one place above them in the FIFA rankings.
Morocco
Morocco, despite reaching the semi-finals in Qatar, still need to go through World Cup qualifying like everyone else. They will host AFCON 2025, which explains their automatic absence from the qualifiers. They have been dominant — three wins from three in this campaign, with a +9 goal difference (10:1).
Niger vs Morocco Prediction
The last time these sides met was a friendly in Rabat in 2019, where Morocco edged a 1:0 win. Across four meetings this century, Morocco have won every time, keeping a clean sheet in each. Given the gulf in quality and form, there’s every reason to expect another professional, controlled performance from the North Africans.
