Nigeria Book Afcon Knockout Place In Spite of Late Carthage Eagles Comeback
Former African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen was instrumental in his team establish a commanding lead, before they were forced to hold on for a narrow win.
Nigeria weathered a dramatic comeback attempt from Tunisia to advance to the knockout stage of the Afcon tournament taking place in the host nation.
Jose Peseiro's side seemed to be cruising in their Group C encounter in Fes, holding a three-goal lead with just a quarter of an hour left courtesy of goals from their attacking trio.
Yet, Montassar Talbi reduced the deficit with a close-range finish from a Manchester United midfielder set-piece, sparking hopes of a turnaround.
The tension intensified when the North Africans were given a late penalty after a VAR check spotted a handling offense by Bright Osayi-Samuel. The left-back converted in the 87th minute to set up a frantic finale.
The Carthage Eagles came agonizingly close from a stunning equalizer in stoppage time, with captain Ferjani Sassi heading a chance just past the post before a substitute guided a bobbling volley wide of the upright.
Securing Top Spot
The victory ensures that Nigeria, winners of the tournament on 3 past instances, move to six group points and are assured top spot in Group C with a match left to play.
In the next round, they will meet a third-placed side from either Group A, B or F.
Meanwhile, the 2004 champions remain on 3 group points, with the East African teams tied on a single point after registering a one-all stalemate earlier on Saturday.
The concluding pool matches will see the group leaders remain in Fes to play the Cranes on Tuesday, while the Eagles of Carthage travel back to the capital to face the Taifa Stars.
A Nervy Conclusion
Ali Abdi drilled the ball from 12 yards to offer his team hope of earning a point.
Nigeria, runners-up in the previous tournament, are the second nation after the Pharaohs to reach the next phase, but their manager and fans will certainly be feeling relieved.
What looked like set to be a straightforward last period morphed into a nerve-wracking affair.
Victor Osimhen had a effort ruled out for offside before opening the scoring on the stroke of half-time, expertly guiding a glancing effort into the bottom corner from an Ademola Lookman delivery.
The advantage was extended soon in the second half when the Leicester City midfielder climbed above everyone to thump in a powerful nod from a set-piece corner.
Osimhen then set up Lookman for the third goal, before Montassar Talbi to direct a powerful header past goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali to begin the comeback.
The key incident arrived when a looping cross struck the arm of Bright Osayi-Samuel, with referee Boubou Traore pointing to the spot after reviewing the pitchside screen.
Despite Ali Abdi's successful penalty, the 2004 champions in the end came up just short of completing a remarkable recovery.
Tunisia's destiny is still in their own hands; a draw against Tunisia will be enough to secure progression, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be eager to prevent a repeat of the 2013 early elimination that resulted in his departure.
