Our prediction for this World Cup 2026 match:
Niger and Burkina Faso face each other at Stade de Marrakech (neutral location) at the start of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. The Menas aim to bounce back from a 3-0 loss to Sudan, but they face a difficult task in Thursday’s football match. Al Ain footballer Amadou Moutari, who has 36 caps for the Niger national team, will be one of the men to watch in the home side.
Burkina Faso, on the other hand, have big ambitions for the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, and they will be vying for top position in Group A with star-studded Algeria. Both Charles Kabore and Sibiri Alain Traore have been left out of the squad, while Edmond Tapsoba and Bertrand Traore remain on the sidelines through injuries. Since Yacouba Coulibaly and Dylan Ouedraogo are out of contention as well, we predict that the visitors will grab only one point from Thursday’s qualifier.
Highlighted Player (Bertrand Traore):
Bertrand Traore is a pacey left-footed winger who plays for Ajax on loan from Chelsea. The Burkina Faso footballers scored 17 goals in 48 league appearances for Vitesse before joining Ajax on 12 August, 2016. Traore made his Ajax debut in a 2-2 draw with Roda, coming as a substitute in the second half of the game.
He made his Champions League debut for the Amsterdammers against Rostov on August, 2016. Bertrand, though, is still a Chelsea player and his contract with the Stamford Bridge outfit expires on 30 June, 2019. Traore a winger, but he is capable of playing as a centre forward as well.
The Burkina Faso footballer was born on 6 September, 1995 and he made his debut for the Burkina Faso national team on 3 September, 2011 in a friendly game against Equatorial Guinea. The same year he won the Africa under 17 championship with Burkina Faso as the Stallions defeated Rwanda in the final of the tournament.
Highlighted Team (Burkina Faso):
Burkina Faso are an African football team that is controlled by the Federation Burkinabe de Foot-Ball. They were playing under the name of Upper Volta until 1984 when they became Burkina Faso. Les Etlons (the Stallions) defeated Gabon in their first international game (5-4) and they recorded their biggest win one year later (Liberia 5-1).
Burkina Faso have yet to qualify for the World Cup finals, whilst they played an important role at the 2013 African Cup of Nations. By beating the likes of Togo and Ghana in the knockout stages the Stallions set up a meeting with Nigeria in the final of the tournament, but the Super Eagles eventually won the title. It has to be noted that Mba scored the winner for Nigeria in the title game.
Jonathan Pitroipa is probably the most notable footballer who played for Burkina Faso the former Rennes ace has 51 caps for the national team. Stade du 4-Aout, the venue that was opened in 1984, is regarded as Burkina Faso’s home ground.