Nigeria’s Super Eagles are back in contention to top Group A after defeating AFCON 2023 hosts Cote d’Ivoire 1-0 on Thursday.
A penalty by captain William Troost-Ekong in the 54th minute was all the Eagles needed for the win and the three points.
Coach Jose Peseiro tweaked his formation to a 3-4-3 to match the Elephants, and he brought in Calvin Bassey as the third centre-back while Samuel Chukwueze replaced Moses Simon on the right flank.
The Eagles were solid defensively, and Victor Osimhen had an early scoring chance, which he missed.
Coach Jose Peseiro’s 3-4-3 formation effectively overloaded the midfield to counter the Elephants midfield trio of Seko Fofana, Ibrahim Sangare, and Franck Kessie. Ola Aina and Zaidu Sanusi’s usage as wing-backs stymied that midfield and helped Nigeria counter.
The first half was a physical contest, with the Eagles winning more of the 50-50 contests. Stanley Nwabali saved Sanusi’s blushes after a weak back pass in the eighth minute.
In the 21st minute, the Eagles’ lax defence allowed Evan Ndicka to take a shot. His shot was straight at Nwabali.
Chukwueze’s goal-bound shot was blocked by Ghislain Konan for a corner kick a minute later as the Eagles continued to trouble the Elephants on the fast breaks. Just before that chance, Troost-Ekong had intercepted a pass and initiated the attack that led to Chukwueze’s chance.
Nwabali’s palms were stung by a long-range shot from Seko Fofana in the 30th minute. In the second minute of added time, Chukwueze failed to pick the right pass.
The second half was just nine minutes old when Ousmane Diomande fouled Osimhen in the box. It needed a VAR intervention for the penalty to be awarded.
Ekong stepped up and blasted straight through the middle, with Yahia Fofana diving to his left. Osimhen passed up another scoring chance in the 62nd minute when he headed over from a long throw from Aina.
The Eagles held firm and gave the Elephants no scoring opportunities, even in the nine minutes that were added on.
Osimhen was chosen as the Man of the Match, with Nigeria now second behind Equatorial Guinea in Group A. Cote d’Ivoire are third on the table, needing a positive result from their last game against Equatorial Guinea.