Nigeria Secure Afcon Last 16 Spot In Spite of Fierce Tunisia Fightback
Ex- African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen was instrumental in his team build a 3-0 lead, but they were forced to hold on for a narrow win.
Nigeria weathered a dramatic late rally from Tunisia to progress to the knockout stage of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations taking place in Morocco.
The Super Eagles seemed to be in complete control in their Group C encounter in the Moroccan city, enjoying a three-goal cushion with just a quarter of an hour left thanks to strikes from their attacking trio.
Yet, Montassar Talbi reduced the deficit with a powerful header from a Manchester United midfielder free-kick, sparking hopes of a turnaround.
The drama escalated when Tunisia were given a spot-kick after a video assistant referee review identified a handball by Bright Osayi-Samuel. Ali Abdi calmly slotted home in the 87th minute to set up a nail-biting finale.
The Carthage Eagles were inches away from a last-gasp leveler in stoppage time, with captain Ferjani Sassi directing a chance just past the post before a substitute guided a bobbling volley past the upright.
Securing First Place
The victory means that the Super Eagles, champions of the competition on three previous occasions, advance to six group points and are guaranteed top spot in Group C with one game left to be contested.
In the next round, they will face a third-placed team from one of the other preliminary groups.
Meanwhile, the 2004 champions remain on three points, with Uganda and Tanzania tied on one point after registering a one-all draw in the day's other fixture.
The concluding group matches will see the group leaders remain in Fes to play Uganda on the next matchday, while the Eagles of Carthage travel back to the capital to confront Tanzania.
An Anxious Finish
Ali Abdi drilled the ball from the penalty spot to give his team hope of snatching a draw.
Nigeria, runners-up in the previous edition, are the next nation after the Pharaohs to qualify for the knockout stage, but their manager and supporters will undoubtedly be feeling relieved.
What looked like set to be a straightforward final quarter morphed into a nerve-wracking affair.
Victor Osimhen had a goal disallowed for an infringement before breaking the deadlock right before the interval, precisely placing a header into the bottom corner from an Atalanta winger delivery.
The lead was doubled soon in the second period when the Leicester City midfielder rose highest to thump in a header from a Lookman corner.
Osimhen then set up his teammate for the seemingly decisive goal, only for the defender to steer a powerful header past the Nigerian shot-stopper to initiate the fightback.
The key incident came when a high ball struck the forearm of Bright Osayi-Samuel, with referee Boubou Traore awarding a penalty after consulting the pitchside screen.
Although Ali Abdi's successful penalty, Tunisia in the end came up just short of completing a remarkable recovery.
Their fate is still in their own hands; a point against Tunisia will be sufficient to see them through, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be keen to prevent a recurrence of the past group-stage exit that led to his previous resignation.
