Thursday , 2 July 2026

Nigeria vs Argentina, Worldcup 2018 GROUP STAGE

FIFA World Cup · 2018
Nigeria
1 – 2
Full Time
Argentina
Tue 26 Jun 2018 · 18:00 UTC HT 45' · FT 45'
Leon Balogun 32' Y
Y 49' Javier Mascherano
Y 64' Ever Banega
John Obi Mikel 90' Y
Y 90' Lionel Messi

Overview

Match Preview

Nigeria vs Argentina — Worldcup .

Match Details

  • Referee Daniele Orsato
  • Referee Massimiliano Irrati
  • Referee Pawel Sokolnicki
  • Referee Bjorn Kuipers
  • Referee Sander van Roekel
  • Referee Cuneyt Cakιr
  • Referee Bahattin Duran
  • Referee Tarik Ongun
  • Referee Pawel Gil
4 games this season 🟨 4.3/game ⚽ 15.5 goals/game 🟥 1 total

Standings

# Team P Pts
1 Mexico 3 9
2 South Africa 3 4
3 South Korea 3 3
4 Czechia 3 1
5 Switzerland 3 7
6 Canada 3 4
7 Bosnia-Herzegovina 3 4
8 Qatar 3 1
9 Brazil 3 7
10 Morocco 3 7
11 Scotland 3 3
12 Haiti 3 0
13 United States 3 6
14 Australia 3 4
15 Paraguay 3 4
16 Turkey 3 3
17 Germany 3 6
18 Ivory Coast 3 6
19 Ecuador 3 4
20 Curacao 3 1
21 Netherlands 3 7
22 Japan 3 5
23 Sweden 3 4
24 Tunisia 3 0
25 Belgium 3 5
26 Egypt 3 5
27 Iran 3 3
28 New Zealand 3 1
29 Spain 3 7
30 Cape Verde Islands 3 3
31 Uruguay 3 2
32 Saudi Arabia 3 2
33 France 3 9
34 Norway 3 6
35 Senegal 3 3
36 Iraq 3 0
37 Argentina 3 9
38 Austria 3 4
39 Algeria 3 4
40 Jordan 3 0
41 Colombia 3 7
42 Portugal 3 5
43 Congo DR 3 4
44 Uzbekistan 3 0
45 England 3 7
46 Croatia 3 6
47 Ghana 3 4
48 Panama 3 0

Head-to-Head

1
Nigeria 1 games · Avg 3.0 goals Argentina
Last 5 meetings
2018-06-26 Nigeria 1–2 Argentina

Recent Form

Nigeria
DateOpponentH/A ScoreResult
26 Jun Argentina H 1–2 L
22 Jun Iceland H 2–0 W
16 Jun Croatia A 0–2 L
21 Aug SV Drochtersen/Assel H 1–2 L
Argentina
DateOpponentH/A ScoreResult
26 Jun Nigeria A 2–1 W
21 Jun Croatia H 0–3 L
16 Jun Iceland H 1–1 D
20 Aug Karlsruher SC H 0–7 L

Key Stats

100% Both Teams to Score
H2H (1 games)
100% Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
67% Clean Sheets
Argentina this season

Goal Timing (This Season)

Argentina
0-15
–/–
16-30
2/–
31-45
2/–
46-60
1/1
61-75
–/–
76+
3/–
■ Scored ■ Conceded

Events

Match Events

  • 0' We are underway at . The crowd does wile while the referee lows the starting whistle.
  • 5' Argentina seems to be on a short break. The game is mainly concentrated in the center. It’s high time they got back to action. Otherwise, it looks like a goalless game.
  • 10' It looks like no one’s ball. Argentina is used to counterattacking playing. None of the sides are ready to take the lead.
  • 14' GOAL! Lionel Messi scores on 14. Assisted by Ever Banega
  • 19' Supporters expect more eagerness from Enzo Perez, as he is very good at scoring at with 0 goals in the last 0 games.
  • 24' Argentina started playing very sharply right from the kick off. However, it slowed down the tempo rapidly by 24.
  • 29' looks like a favorite considering 0 games won in last 0 matches with its main striker scoring goals.
  • 32' Leon Balogun was booked on 32.
  • 37' Spectators are craving for more action. Both teams play very cautiously. They need to put some more energy.
  • 42' The travelling Argentina supporters hardly appreciate their team being pressed down to the backline.
  • 46' Time for substitution for Nigeria. Kelechi Iheanacho is replaced by Odion Ighalo.
  • 49' Argentina player sees a Yellow card in front of him.
  • 51' What a strike from Victor Moses! The score is 1-1.
  • 56' While there is no rush on the pitch, let’s have a look at some stats. Javier Mascherano made 168 appearances and scored 0 goals. He is very likely to score a goal today.
  • 61' Cristian Pavon is replacing Enzo Perez for the Argentina side.
  • 64' A meaty challenge results in booking for Ever Banega on 64.
  • 69' Both teams are passing the ball around with high level of urgency. Argentina needs to do something about it to get closer to the goal.
  • 72' Another substitution for Argentina to replace Angel di Maria by Maximiliano Meza on 72 minute.
  • 77' Brian Idowu has certainly something to prove this evening. He made 30 appearances with only 0 goals this season.
  • 80' Time for substitution for Argentina. Nicolas Tagliafico is replaced by Sergio Aguero.
  • 85' Nigeria is defending very well tonight not leaving a chance for their rivals to get through for a goal.
  • 86' What a strike from Marcos Rojo! The score is 1-2.
  • 90' Nigeria player sees a Yellow card in front of him.
  • 90' Nigeria manager makes another effort to make the tables turned. Alex Iwobi is hanging Kenneth Omeruo on the field on 90 minute.
  • Hope, you loved the show. Another epic battle is over with the score 1-2.

Lineups

Nigeria Lineups

Starting XI

Bench

Coach Gernot Rohr

Argentina Lineups

Starting XI

Bench

Coach Jorge Sampaoli

Predictions

Prediction accuracy
2 / 4
1.22 Nigeria xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.46 Argentina xG
I would bet for: Nigeria or Argentina 71%

Match Result

✓ Correct
Nigeria32% Draw29% Argentina39%
Actual: Argentina win

Both Teams to Score

✓ Correct
Yes55% 0% No45%
Avg goals/match: 2.68
Actual: Yes — both scored

Over / Under Goals

✗ O/U 2.5
Line Over Under
± 0.5 91%
9%
± 1.5 75%
25%
± 2.5 50%
50%
± 3.5 28%
72%
± 4.5 14%
86%

Double Chance

Nigeria or Draw
61%
Draw or Argentina
68%
Nigeria or Argentina
71%

Half-Time Result

✗ Wrong
Nigeria23% Draw47% Argentina30%
Actual: Argentina win at HT

Correct Score

✓ In top 12
1 – 1
13.1%
0 – 1
9%
0 – 0
8.8%
1 – 2
Actual
1 – 0
7.4%
2 – 1
7.2%
0 – 2
7.1%
2 – 2
5.3%
2 – 0
5%
1 – 3
4.2%
0 – 3
3.4%
3 – 1
2.9%

Asian Handicap — Nigeria

Handicap Nigeria covers Push Argentina covers
-2.5 4% — 96%
-2 4% 9% 87%
-1.5 13% — 87%
-1 13% 17% 70%
-0.5 30% — 70%
+0.5 59% — 41%
+1 59% 21% 20%
+1.5 80% — 20%
+2 80% 12% 8%
+2.5 92% — 8%

Clean Sheet

Nigeria keeps clean sheet
24% ✓
Argentina keeps clean sheet
30% ✓

Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.