A brace by Ademola Lookman sealed a 2-0 victory for the Super Eagles of Nigeria over Cameroon in Abidjan on Saturday evening and a quarter final spot in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), Cote d’Ivoire 2023.
In an entertaining Round of 16 game played at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, the Super Eagles delivered a strong performance to tame the Indomitable Lions.
Lookman scored his first goal in the 36th minute following a strong assist by African Player of the Year, Victor Osimhen.
Osimhen, who had another impressive performance, dispossessed a Cameroonian defender and fed Lookman in the Lion’s 18-yard box.
Lookman’s was lucky that his straight shot squirmed out of the grasp of the Cameroon goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa into the net.
However, the Atalanta forward did not need any stroke of luck to get his brace in the 90th minute. A beautiful pass by Calvin Bassey from the left side found Lookman lurking in the box who finished a great team move with a fine right foot strike into the corner of the net. It was a worthy man of the match performance.
“I love this atmosphere, it’s incredible. Tonight our fans pushed us to the end because this was Cameroon, and when you wear the Super Eagles shirt, some games resonate more than others,” Lookman said after the match.
A sour point for the Super Eagles in a commanding performance was the loss of first choice goalkeeper, Stanley Nwabali.
Following a clash with a Cameroonian player in his box, Nwabali was injured and replaced by Francis Uzoho in the 80th minute.
Nigeria will now play Angola on Friday in the quarter-final of the AFCON 2023 at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny stadium.
Earlier on Saturday, in an all Southern African affair, the Palancas Negras defeated Namibia 3-0 in a match which saw two red cards issued to both teams.
The Super Eagles are aiming to win the AFCON trophy for the fourth time in their history.
