Group B contenders
Argentina
Nigeria
Korea Republic
Greece

Route to the finals
Group B in the Africa qualifying zone was an incredibly close affair, with the outcome going down to the very last game of the campaign.

Despite being the favourites in a group consisting of Tunisia, Mozambique and Kenya, Nigeria found themselves playing catch-up after dropping two points in their first game against Mozambique.

However, Nigeria were ultimately successful as, in the last round of matches, they fought back from a goal down against Kenya to win 3-2, ensuring Tunisia – who were beaten 1-0 by Mozambique – finished in second place.

Manager
Despite leading them through a successful qualifying campaign, Shaibu Amodu was removed from the Manager position after his team finished in third place at the 2010 African Cup of Nations in Angola.

He has since been replaced with Lars Lagerback, the former co-Manager of Sweden who took the Scandinavians to the knock-out stages at both the 2002 and 2006 World Cups.

Player watch
Nigeria’s major threat comes from their powerful forward line, several of which will be familiar to those who follow the English Premier League.

The likes of Yakubu Ayegbeni, Victor Anichebe (both Everton), Nwankwo Kanu and John Utaka (both Portsmouth) have all been named in Lars Lagerback’s provisional 30-man squad, and will provide several options for the Swede.

Elsewhere, Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has also been named in the squad despite currently being injured.

Competition History
First appearance: 1994
No. of appearances (inc 2010): 4
Best result: Round of 16 (1994 & 1998)
Matches against England: 2

Squad

Goalkeepers
1	Vincent Enyeama	Hapoel Tel Aviv, ISR
16	Austin Ejide	Hapoel Petach Tikva, ISR
23	Dele Aiyenugba	Bnei Yehoda, ISR
Defenders
2	Joseph Yobo	Everton, ENG
3	Taye Taiwo	Olympique Marseille, FRA
5	Rabiu Afolabi	Red Bull Salzburg, AUT
6	Danny Shittu	Bolton Wanderers, ENG
17	Chidi Odiah	CSKA Moskva, RUS
21	Uwa Echiejile	Rennes, FRA
22	Dele Adeleye	Sparta Rotterdam, NED
Midfielders
4	Nwankwo Kanu	Portsmouth, ENG
10	John Obi Mikel	Chelsea, ENG
12	Kalu Uche	UD Almería, ESP
13	Ayila Yussuf	Dynamo Kyiv, UKR
14	Sani Kaita	Alania Vladikavkaz, RUS
15	Lukman Haruna	AS Monaco, FRA
20	Dickson Etuhu	Fulham, ENG
Forwards
7	John Utaka	Portsmouth, ENG
8	Yakubu Aiyegbeni	Everton, ENG
9	Obafemi Martins	VfL Wolfsburg, GER
11	Peter Odemwingie	Lokomotiv Moskva, RUS
18	Obinna	Málaga CF, ESP
19	Chinedu Obasi	Hoffenheim, GER