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By Amaechi Agbo

There-time Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON champions, Super Eagles of Nigeria will seek a place into the 2023 edition of the biennial continental football showpiece but they will need to navigate the hurdles possed by Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau and either Sao Tome Principe or Mauritius, www.bestchoicesports.com.ng can report.

Super Eagles who exited the 2021 AFCON in Cameroon at the Round of 16 stage will battle Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau and either Sao Tome Principe or Mauritius in Group A.

The draw for the Africa Cup of Nations, Côte d’Ivoire 2023 was conducted in Johannesburg, South Africa on Tuesday evening, with exciting matches lined up towards next year’s tournament.

The draw was conducted by African football legends, former South Africa defender Lucas Radebe and ex Côte d’Ivoire forward Solomon Kalou.

Defending champions Senegal have been pooled in Group L where they will battle out with Benin, Mozambique and Rwanda.

Hosts Côte d’Ivoire are in Group H with Zambia, Comoros and Lesotho. Only one team will qualify from this group, alongside the hosts. Comoros who were one of the surprise packages at the delayed 2021 showpiece in Cameroon are seeking for a second consecutive qualification.

Losing finalists from the 2021 showpiece Egypt have meanwhile been drawn in Pool D and Mohamed Salah will fancy another battle against club teammate Naby Keita as they have been drawn with Guinea, Malawi and Ethiopia.

There will be several derbies as well with East African rivals Uganda and Tanzania drawn together again, and they will face off in Group F together with 2019 champions Algeria and Niger.

Uganda and Tanzania faced off in the qualifiers for the 2019 showpiece where they drew 0-0 in the first leg in Kampala and Tanzania winning 3-0 in Dar es Salaam.

Tanzania also faced Algeria at the subsequent tournament in Egypt, where they suffered a 3-0 defeat.

The best two teams from each group will qualify for the finals in Cote D’Ivoire next year. Senegal are the defending champions after beating Egypt on penalties to win their first ever AFCON diadem in Cameroon on February 6, 2022.

Below is the full draw
Group A

Nigeria
Sierra Leone
Guinea Bissau
Sao Tome Principe/ Mauritius

Group B

Burkina Faso
Cape Verde
Togo
Eswatini

Group C

Cameroon
Kenya
Namibia
Burundi

Group D

Egypt
Guinea
Malawi
Ethiopia

Group E

Ghana
Madagascar
Angola
Central Africa Republic

Group F

Algeria
Uganda
Niger
Tanzania

Group G

Mali
Congo
The Gambia
South Sudan

Group H

Ivory Coast
Zambia
Comoros
Lesotho

Group

DR Congo
Gabon
Mauritania
Sudan

Group J

Tunisia
Equatorial Guinea
Libya
Botswana

Group K

Morocco
South Africa
Zimbabwe
Liberia

Group L

Senegal
Benin
Mozambique
Rwanda

Tje qualifiers bare expected to begin in June this year.