Nigeria Secure Afcon Last 16 Place Despite Late Tunisia Comeback
Ex- African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen helped his team build a 3-0 advantage, before they were compelled to hold on for a hard-fought win.
The three-time champions survived a stunning late rally from Tunisia to progress to the last 16 of the Afcon tournament being held in the host nation.
The Super Eagles seemed to be cruising in their pool encounter in the Moroccan city, enjoying a three-goal cushion with just 17 minutes remaining courtesy of strikes from their attacking trio.
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 intensified when Tunisia were awarded a late penalty after a VAR review identified a handling offense by Bright Osayi-Samuel. The left-back calmly slotted home in the dying stages to set up a frantic conclusion.
The Carthage Eagles were inches away from a last-gasp leveler in added time, with captain Ferjani Sassi directing a opportunity narrowly wide before Ismael Gharbi guided a bobbling volley wide of the goal frame.
Clinching Top Spot
The victory means that Nigeria, champions of the competition on three previous occasions, advance to six group points and are guaranteed first place in Group C with one game still to play.
For the round of 16, they will face a third-placed side from one of the other preliminary groups.
Meanwhile, Tunisia stay on 3 points, with Uganda and Tanzania locked on one point after registering a one-all stalemate earlier on Saturday.
The concluding group matches will see the group leaders stay in the city to play the Cranes on the next matchday, while the Eagles of Carthage travel back to Rabat to confront Tanzania.
An Anxious Conclusion
Ali Abdi drilled the ball from 12 yards to offer Tunisia a glimmer of hope of earning a draw.
Nigeria, finalists in the previous tournament, are the second nation after Egypt to reach the knockout stage, but their manager and supporters will certainly be feeling relieved.
What looked like set to be a comfortable last period transformed into a nerve-wracking affair.
The prolific striker had a goal disallowed for offside before breaking the deadlock right before half-time, expertly guiding a glancing effort into the bottom corner from an Ademola Lookman cross.
The advantage was doubled soon in the second period when the Leicester City midfielder climbed above everyone to thump in a powerful nod from a set-piece corner.
The number 9 then set up Lookman for the third goal, before the defender to direct a header past the Nigerian shot-stopper to begin the fightback.
The pivotal incident came when a high ball struck the arm of the full-back, with referee Boubou Traore awarding a penalty after consulting the VAR monitor.
Despite Ali Abdi's confident conversion, Tunisia ultimately came up just short of pulling off a stirring recovery.
Their fate remains in their own hands; a draw against Tanzania will be enough to see them through, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be eager to avoid a recurrence of the 2013 early elimination that resulted in his previous resignation.
