Benin release statement after Cheetahs arrive in Libyan airport ahead of AFCON qualifier

• Benin national team players and officials have landed in Libya for their final game of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier
• The Cheetahs need at least a draw to confirm their ticket to next year's continental showpiece billed to be hosted in Morocco
• While Libya are on 4 points with minus 4 goals, Benin head into the fixture with 7 points and a zero-goal difference

The Cheetahs of Benin have landed in Libya ahead of their crucial 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against the Mediterranean Knights.

Gernot Rohr's team need at least a draw to confirm their ticket to next year's continental showpiece billed to be hosted in Morocco.

With 4 points from 5 matches, Libya will need to beat the visiting Benin side by at least four goals to have any chance of progressing.

Benin national team arrive in Libya ahead of their 2025 AFCON qualifier against the Mediterranean Knights. Photo: @JoueursBJ.
Source: Twitter

Benin go into the final fixture of the qualifying series with 7 points and will need at least a point to qualify for the 2025 AFCON finals.

Rwanda, on the other hand, have a herculean task against the already qualified Super Eagles of Nigeria as both teams clash in Uyo.

The Amavubi, who have 5 points and minus 3 goals, will need to thrash Nigeria by at least three goals at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium.

Nigeria have already confirmed their place as the group winners with 11 points from 5 matches.

Odds favour Benin to progress

All the odds favour the Benin Republic to pick the second ticket and qualify alongside the three-time African champions.

The Cheetahs flew directly to Tripoli, and all protocols were quickly sorted as the players headed for the team's hotel.

Benin outlet Joueurs Beninoise wrote on X:

"The Cheetahs have arrived safely in Tripoli. Everything went well on arrival. "The team left the airport without any problems after the administrative formalities and is already settled in the hotel. Now it's time for the match."

Recall that the Super Eagles of Nigeria had a tough time in Libya and had to abandon their clash against the host nation.

A flight carrying the Nigerian team was minutes from landing in Benghazi when Libyan authorities diverted the plane to another city.

The Nigerian players and officials were stranded at the Al-Abraq airport for more than 20 hours, forcing the Super Eagles to return home.

CAF ruled on the matter and awarded Nigeria 3 points and 3 goals, while the Libyan Football Federation was fined $50,000, Cyber Reporters reports.

Legit.ng earlier reported that the Benin Republic national team warned their Libyan counterparts strongly, emphasizing that they will not tolerate any off-field antics.

The Libyan team recently made headlines for the wrong reasons when their federation reportedly held the Nigerian Super Eagles hostage for over 20 hours.

The unsavoury incident prompted the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to issue a statement condemning the act and imposing sanctions on the Libyan team.

Source: Legit.ng