Nigeria will make the trip to Corendon Airlines Park in Antalya for their friendly encounter with Iran on Friday.
This clash marks the Super Eagles' first match since they won bronze at the 2025 AFCON in January.
Winless in two previous meetings with Nigeria, Iran are eager to build vital momentum as they fine-tune their tactics ahead of this summer’s FIFA World Cup.
Read our Iran vs Nigeria prediction, preview and betting tips. You can also check out our Today's betting tips page for more of our expert predictions.
Contents
Iran vs Nigeria key stats
- Nigeria have not conceded a single goal in four consecutive matches.
- Iran drew blanks in their two previous skirmishes with Nigeria.
- Both teams’ last two respective games ended goalless.
Iran vs Nigeria preview: Team Melli to earn their first victory?
| Iran | vs | Nigeria |
|---|---|---|
| 20th | FIFA ranking | 26th |
| Ehsan Hajsafi (142) | Most caps | Alex Iwobi (97) |
| Mehdi Taremi (56) | Most goals | Ademola Lookman (11) |
| 1166 | Total caps | 774 |
| 144 | Total goals | 58 |
| 5 | Uncapped players | 3 |
Under the tutelage of Amir Ghalenoei, Iran booked their place in the 2026 World Cup. Team Melli will enter this contest with some work to do ahead of their visit to North America this summer.
The Middle Eastern outfit have been drawn in Group G alongside Egypt, Belgium, and New Zealand, giving them some level playing ground and a feeling of possible qualification into the knockout phase.
Iran have 12 wins in the 14 friendlies they have played in the last three years.
Coach Ghalenoei will be without one key player for this preparatory game, with prolific forward Sardar Azmoun excluded from the squad due to issues with the federation. It's worth noting that Azmoun is the country’s second all-time top scorer with 57 goals, only behind Ali Daei, who has 108 goals to his name.
Mohammad Khalife, Hadi Habibinejad, Dennis Eckert, Amirhossein Mahmoudi, and Ehsan Mahroughi are the newest faces in the squad. Captain and top scorer of this current squad, Mehdi Taremi, will look to extend his goal tally for the national team here, with the Olympiacos forward expected to lead the line alongside Amirhossein Hosseinzadeh for Iran.
As for Nigeria, failing to secure a spot in the Mundial has been a huge disappointment, considering the calibre of players the Super Eagles have at their disposal.
However, the African giants have witnessed improvements since the appointment of Eric Chelle, who took over the helm when World Cup qualification hopes were slim. The former Mali boss led Nigeria to the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year and has largely been seen as a good fit for the national team.
Nigeria have played five friendlies in the past year, winning only one of them.
For the friendlies against Iran and Jordan this month, Chelle is without star striker Victor Osimhen, who is sidelined with a fractured forearm, and Cyriel Dessers’ long-term thigh problem has also excused the Panathinaikos forward from the squad.
Defender Ola Aina, who was unavailable during the last Africa Cup of Nations, is out of the team once again due to match fitness concerns, while first-choice goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, who is still without a team, has been left out for technical reasons.
Yira Sor, Emmanuel Fernandez, and Philip Otele are the three recent uncapped players in the Super Eagles squad for the March friendlies.
Iran vs Nigeria form guide & betting tips
| Iran | vs | Nigeria |
|---|---|---|
| L-L-W-W-L | Form | W-W-W-L-W |
| 3 | Goals For | 9 |
| 2 | Goals Against | 1 |
Whispers Predicts: Iran 0-0 Nigeria
At the time of writing, the Iran vs Nigeria odds have not been released yet.
Interestingly, both sides enter this clash with identical recent records, each following a 2-0 victory with two consecutive goalless stalemates.
It is also worth mentioning that the last encounter between Iran and Nigeria at the 2014 FIFA World Cup ended goalless.
Keeping in mind that Iran have kept three consecutive clean sheets, while Nigeria did not concede in their last four matches, we fancy a 0-0 correct score.
> BTTS - No at TBA | Likelihood: Probable
> Under 2.5 goals at TBA | Likelihood: Probable
> Match result - Draw at TBA | Likelihood: Possible
> Draw & BTTS - No at TBA | Likelihood: Outsider
> Correct score: 0-0 at TBA | Likelihood: Outsider