Nigeria’s Dream Team V1 trade tackles the Dark Horses of Denmark today for the quarterfinal clash of the ongoing 2016 Rio Olympics men’s football tournament.

The Nigeria’s squad is the biggest shocker in the tournament as the team was not favored to go past the group stages during pre-Olympic predictions. Despite the issues associated with the team arriving hours before kick-off of the first group game against Japan, the Dream Team weathered the storm and defeated Japan 5-4 in a their first match with full of attacking vigor and an equal measure of calamitous defending.

A much improved second group game saw the team defeating Sweden 1-0 courtesy of a Sadiq Umar headed goal.

The team lost 2-to Colombia in their final group match on Wednesday, but they still ended up at the top spot of the bracket with six points while Los Cafeteros settled at second place with five points.

Today’s showdown with Scandinavian giants would just be another match for Coach Samson Siasia tutored men to prove that their impressive run of form against Japan and Sweden respectively were not just flukes.

With the pain of 1998 World Cup second round lost to Denmark still aching Nigerian soccer fans, Siasia and his boys would definitely want to put the Danish to their sword in today’s game.

Denmark smashed Nigeria 4-1 in one of the Eagles’ worst ever defeats in the World Cup. In fact, the Super Eagles have never conceded that many goals in a single game at the World Cup.

To add more spice to tonight’s encounter, Nigeria and Denmark met at the Suwon Tournament in June 2016. It was a scandalous end to the game for Siasia’s men.  Dream Team VI lost the game 6-2, and it could have been worse than that but for some comical finishing by Denmark. Samson Siasia and his wards had no answer to the superior fire-power of the Danish side.

Denmark finished behind Brazil in group A to set a date with Nigeria, who topped group B despite losing 2-0 to Colombia. Denmark was annihilated 4-0 by hosts Brazil in their last group game, the Europeans will prove a handful for Nigeria, as they are very robust, compact and they play as a unit.

Samson Siasia rested five players for the Colombia game in a bid to give others a chance to shine. That did not work out as expected, and to make matters worse, the medics are still sweating to get the star man, Oghenekaro Etebo fit for this quarterfinal cracker.

However, Siasia-led coaching crew will continue to rely on Umar Sadiq, who had scored two goals in the tournament so far before the no-show against Colombia.

Nigeria go into today’s game knowing that they have bury the ghosts of past defeats by the Danish, and take themselves one step closer to the gold medal.