Gabonese striker Denis Bouanga has fired a strong message to the Super Eagles of Nigeria ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup playoffs in Morocco.

Nigeria and Gabon were two of the four best second-placed teams during the group stage of the CAF qualifying series for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The Super Eagles finished second in Group C with 17 points behind South Africa, which had 18 points, while Gabon finished with 25 points in Group F behind African champions Cote d'Ivoire.

The two sides were drawn against each other in the semi-final of the playoffs because of their FIFA rankings. Nigeria is 41st in the world, while Gabon is 77th.

54th-placed Cameroon and 60th-placed Democratic Republic of Congo will play in the other semi-final. The winners of the two matches will play in the final.

According to CAF, the semi-final matches will be played on November 13 and the final on November 16.

The winner will compete in the intercontinental playoff in Mexico in March 2026.

Denis Bouanga reaches MLS milestone

According to World Soccer Talk, Gabonese striker Denis Bouanga reached a milestone in Major League Soccer, a feat even Lionel Messi has achieved.

Bouanga scored twice for Los Angeles FC during the 4-1 win over Austin FC in the MLS playoffs to progress to the next round of the competition.

These two 🔥

Bouanga: 2 goals, 1 assist
Sonny: 1 goal, 1 assist@LAFC is moving on in the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs. pic.twitter.com/3Cgmhlsuu9

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) November 3, 2025

The 30-year-old striker became the ninth player to score at least 10 goals in the MLS playoffs and is the only active footballer on the elite list.

American legend Landon Donovan leads the list with 25 playoff goals, while Lionel Messi is absent as he is partaking in his second playoff.

Bouanga’s goalscoring exploits for Los Angeles FC and his performance in the group stage of the World Cup qualifier send a strong message to the Super Eagles.

Bouanga and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang combined for 14 of the 22 goals Gabon scored during the group stage, which makes them a threat to Nigeria.

The Super Eagles will bank on their target man Victor Osimhen to help them outscore the Gabonese, while William Troost-Ekong and co neutralise Bouanga and Aubameyang.

Osimhen scored six goals in the group stage, including a hat-trick against Benin, despite playing only five matches for the Nigerian national team.