By Ayomide Otitoju
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has appointed Moroccan referee Jalal Jayed to officiate Nigeria’s third-place playoff against Egypt at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
CAF confirmed the appointment on Friday, naming Zakaria Brinsi and Akarkad Mostafa, also from Morocco, as assistant referees. Tunisia’s Hassani Khalil will serve as assistant referee three, while Kenya’s Peter Kamaku has been designated as the fourth official.
Algerian official Lahlou Benbraham will act as Video Assistant Referee (VAR), assisted by Tunisia’s Haythem Guirat and Morocco’s Hamza El Fariq.
Nigeria will face Egypt on Saturday, days after the Super Eagles were eliminated in the semi-finals by hosts Morocco, who won 4–2 on penalties following a goalless 120 minutes. Morocco will now take on Senegal in Sunday’s final.
Saturday’s fixture marks Nigeria’s ninth appearance in an AFCON third-place playoff. The Super Eagles have won all eight previous bronze medal matches, the most in the tournament’s history.
Nigeria entered the AFCON seeking redemption after missing out on qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup following a penalty shootout defeat to DR Congo in the playoffs. En route to the semi-finals, the Super Eagles impressed in attack, scoring 14 goals, including a 4–0 rout of Mozambique and a 2–0 victory over Algeria.
However, against Morocco in the semi-final, Eric Chelle’s side struggled to replicate their attacking dominance, though they remained defensively solid before eventually bowing out on penalties.
