Nigeria Secure Africa Cup of Nations Knockout Spot In Spite of Late Carthage Eagles Comeback
Ex- African Footballer of the Year the Napoli star was instrumental in his team build a commanding advantage, before the Super Eagles were compelled to hold on for a narrow win.
Nigeria survived a stunning late rally from their opponents to progress to the knockout stage of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations being held in Morocco.
Jose Peseiro's side appeared to be in complete control in their Group C encounter in the Moroccan city, enjoying a three-goal lead with just 17 minutes left thanks to goals from Victor Osimhen, Wilfred Ndidi and Ademola Lookman.
However, Montassar Talbi pulled one back with a close-range finish from a Manchester United midfielder free-kick, sparking hopes of a recovery.
The tension escalated when Tunisia were awarded a spot-kick after a video assistant referee check spotted a handball by the Nigerian defender. The left-back converted in the 87th minute to set up a nail-biting finale.
The Carthage Eagles came agonizingly close from a last-gasp leveler in stoppage time, with captain Ferjani Sassi directing a chance narrowly wide before Ismael Gharbi sent a bobbling volley past the goal frame.
Clinching First Place
This result ensures that Nigeria, winners of the competition on three past instances, advance to six points and are guaranteed first place in their pool with one game left to play.
In the next round, they will meet a third-placed side from either the other preliminary groups.
Meanwhile, the 2004 champions stay on three points, with Uganda and Tanzania tied on one point after registering a one-all stalemate earlier on Saturday.
The final group matches will see the group leaders remain in the city to take on Uganda on the next matchday, while the Eagles of Carthage return to Rabat to confront the Taifa Stars.
An Anxious Finish
Ali Abdi drilled the ball from the penalty spot to give Tunisia a glimmer of hope of earning a point.
The Super Eagles, runners-up in the 2023 edition, become the second team after the Pharaohs to reach the knockout stage, but their manager and supporters will certainly be feeling relieved.
What seemed set to be a straightforward final quarter morphed into a nerve-wracking conclusion.
The prolific striker had a effort ruled out for an infringement before opening the scoring on the stroke of the interval, expertly guiding a header into the bottom corner from an Ademola Lookman delivery.
The lead was doubled soon in the second half when the Leicester City midfielder climbed above everyone to power home a powerful nod from a set-piece corner.
Osimhen then set up his teammate for the third goal, only for the defender to steer a powerful header past goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali to initiate the fightback.
The pivotal moment came when a looping cross struck the arm of the full-back, with referee Boubou Traore awarding a penalty after reviewing the VAR monitor.
Despite the defender's confident conversion, Tunisia ultimately came up just short of pulling off a stirring comeback.
Tunisia's destiny remains in their control; a draw against Tanzania will be enough to secure progression, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be keen to prevent a recurrence of the past group-stage exit that resulted in his previous resignation.
