By John Egbokhan

The Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas is the setting for tonight’s exhibition match between the El Tri of Mexico and the Super Eagles of Nigeria, who are the reigning African champions. The match actually kicks off 8pm Houston time (2am Saturday in Nigeria.

Reliant Stadium has a seating capacity for 77,054 fans but tonight’s match might not attract a full house despite the fact that Houston boasts of a great number of Mexicans and Nigerians, who would  nonetheless, make a spectacle out of this match, holding  exactly five days to the all-important 2014 World Cup qualifier against the Harambee Stars of Kenya in Nairobi.

For the Eagles, the match against the Mexico is not a do-or-die affair while the June 5 clash with the Kenyans is already a make-or-mar one, because a Nigerian defeat will see the African champions surrender their top spot on the table. Eagles currently lead with five points but with two away matches coming up on June 5 and June 12, they know that they are walking on a tight-rope on the road to Brazil 2014 World Cup.

This explains why Coach Stephen Keshi has opted not to attach so much importance on tonight’s game even as he wants his team to have a decent performance.

“This is a crucial period that we are in and we have to very careful not to lose sight of our real goal which is to qualify for the 2014 World Cup. The match against Mexico is important but the upcoming game against Kenya is of more importance to Nigeria and we are going to play the Mexicans with an eye on the Kenyans”, Keshi said in Abuja, before the team traveled out of the country,.

He added that the Eagles were going to play Mexico with caution, in order not to risk any serious injuries capable of ruling any key player out of the Kenya game.

“We cannot afford to lose any player to injury. We need a strong team for the match in Kenya and I am ready to do anything that will ensure that we go to Kenya with fit and tested players because that is one match that we cannot afford to lose”, Keshi said.

The game will be played two weeks before the two nations participate in the prestigious Confederations Cup in Brazil.

Considering Mexico are likely to bring an A-team as El Tri play their final tune-up ahead of two World Cup qualifiers before heading off to the showcase international tournament of the summer in Brazil, the match against Nigeria’s Eagles arguably could be the biggest international friendly in the history of soccer in Houston.

“These are two great teams,” Texas president Jamey Rootes, a former Division I soccer captain told Houston Chronicle. “Both of these teams are in the throes of World Cup qualifying. This is a very important match in terms of preparation for the Confederations Cup.”