History favours Argentina over Group D rivals in World Cup

Moscow: History favours Argentina in its upcoming clashes with Nigeria and Croatia in Group D at the FIFA World Cup in Russia while it will face Iceland for the first time on Saturday.

Nigeria and Argentina have tussled a number of times, with the last of these serving as a warning to Buenos Aires, as its team lost 4-2 to the African side in Moscow in a friendly last November, reports Xinhua news agency.

Overall, Argentina and Nigeria have clashed on eight occasions, with the Argentines winning five times, drawing once and losing twico.

At World Cups, however, Argentina's dominance has been uncontested, having defeated Nigeria 2-1 in the US in 1994, 1-0 in 2002, 1-0 in 2010 and 3-2 in 2014.

Against Croatia, Argentina also enjoys a historic advantage, having faced them four times, winning twice, drawing once and losing once.

The only time these two sides have faced off at the World Cup was in France 1998. Argentina won 1-0 in the group stage, thanks to a goal from defender Mauricio Pineda.

Argentina will face Iceland on June 16, Croatia on June 21 and Nigeria on June 26.