Nigeria drew 0-0 in Ghana on Sunday to boost hopes of a first overall African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifying victory against their arch rivals.
The countries have met twice before in two-leg eliminators for a tournament restricted to footballers playing in their country of birth, with Ghana succeeding each time.
Ghana edged Nigeria 3-2 on aggregate in 2009 and won on penalties after a 2-2 tie when they clashed again in the last edition.
Playing in Accra, Ghana applied early pressure, but the second round, first leg soon developed into a cagey affair fought mainly in midfield with few scoring chances.
Nigeria came closest to breaking the deadlock when Abubakar Adamu rattled the woodwork in the second half.
When the home team gained the initiative in the closing stages, Nigeria goalkeeper Henry Ozoemena made several excellent saves.
Nigeria will host the return match in southeastern city Uyo on Saturday with a place at the February 1-28 tournament in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda up for grabs.
Meanwhile, defending champions Senegal took a lead that lasted only six minutes in a 1-1 draw away to Liberia in Paynesville.
Liberia, eliminated from the last two qualifying competitions by Senegal, fell behind on 75 minutes when Seydina Mbaye scored.
Abdullai Bility levelled for the home side to offer a glimmer of hope to the Liberians ahead of the return match.
Senegal, who shocked hosts Algeria in the previous final, are hoping to emulate Morocco and become the second nation to win back-to-back CHAN titles.
Ivory Coast built a 2-0 lead over west African neighbours Burkina Faso in Abidjan thanks to Oumar Konate, who netted in each half.
Sudan also won 2-0, away to Ethiopia, to stake a strong claim for a tournament place. Yasir Mozamil scored in the opening half and Moussa Kante deep in added time.