Super Eagles defender, Leon Balogun believes that Nigeria stands a chance of advancing from the group stages of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
The Super Eagles have been drawn to face Croatia, Iceland and Argentina, in its sixth appearance at the World Cup.
In an interview with ESPN, the Mainz defender, who showed a lot of respect for Nigeria’s opponents, said it is important for Nigeria to take them serious, as they are quality sides that can beat anybody on a good day.
“Argentina is a team that stands for themselves, if you look at the quality of players in the team, you will see that it is a quality team.
“Iceland is a team that we have to take serious. They made a strong impact at the European championship and qualifying for the World Cup. They are a big surprise; you can compare them to Zambia in Africa.
Croatia can be compared to Algeria. They also possess individual qualities and on a good day, they can beat anybody.
But Nigeria has a chance. We have to prove that we are tougher than Iceland and Croatia, it’s going to be hard, but I think we can do it.
Balogun described meeting Argentina at the World Cup once again as a “nice challenge.” For him, “it is similar to the qualifiers where we had stiff competitions, but the chances are there for us.”
Nigeria will begin its 2018 World Cup quest against Croatia in Kaliningrad on 16th June, 2018.