The Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Tuesday appointed experienced Angolan referee Helder Martins de Carvalho as the arbiter for Nigeria’s 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Group B game against Guinea on Wednesday, reports www.aclsports.com.
Carvalho, 42, became an international referee in 2008 but has never officiated a game involving Nigeria’s Super Eagles throughout his eleven years of officiating on the continent so far.
He will be assisted by compatriot Jerson Emiliano dos Santos (Assistant Referee 1) and Mozambique’s Arsenio Chadreque Maringule (Assistant Referee 2) while Mauritania’s Beida Dahane will serve as the fourth official.
The last time Carvalho was involved in a game that had a Nigerian team was in March 2018 when he officiated a CAF Champions League game between Nigerian side Plateau United and Tunisia’s Etoile du Sahel at the Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano. The Nigerians won 1-0.
Carvalho’s previous match involving the Syli Stars of Guinea was in 2017 when the Guineans won away from home against Coted’voire in their first qualifying game for the current tournament. Liverpool’s Naby Keita scored the winner in the 3-2 victory in Bouaké.
Wednesday’s game will kick off at 4:30pm local time in Alexandria (3:30pm in Nigeria) at the 20,000 capacity Alexandria Stadium.
