Nigeria Secure Africa Cup of Nations Knockout Place In Spite of Late Tunisia Fightback
Ex- Continent's Best Player of the Year the Napoli star helped Nigeria build a 3-0 lead, before the Super Eagles were forced to defend resolutely for a hard-fought victory.
Nigeria survived a stunning late rally from their opponents to progress to the knockout stage of the Afcon tournament taking place in Morocco.
Jose Peseiro's side appeared to be in complete control in their pool encounter in Fes, holding a three-goal lead with only a quarter of an hour left thanks to goals from their attacking trio.
However, Montassar Talbi pulled one back with a close-range finish from a Hannibal Mejbri set-piece, igniting hopes of a turnaround.
The drama intensified when Tunisia were given a late penalty after a VAR check identified a handball by Bright Osayi-Samuel. The left-back converted in the 87th minute to create a frantic finale.
The Carthage Eagles came agonizingly close from a stunning leveler in added time, with captain Ferjani Sassi directing a chance narrowly wide before Ismael Gharbi sent a half-volley wide of the upright.
Securing Top Spot
This result means that the Super Eagles, champions of the tournament on 3 past instances, move to six points and are assured first place in Group C with a match still to be contested.
For the round of 16, they will meet a third-placed team from one of the other preliminary groups.
Meanwhile, Tunisia stay on 3 group points, with Uganda and Tanzania locked on a single point after playing out a one-all stalemate in the day's other fixture.
The final group fixtures will see Nigeria stay in the city to play Uganda on Tuesday, while Tunisia travel back to Rabat to face Tanzania.
A Nervy Finish
Ali Abdi smashed home from the penalty spot to offer Tunisia a glimmer of hope of snatching a draw.
Nigeria, finalists in the 2023 edition, are the second nation after the Pharaohs to qualify for the knockout stage, but their manager and fans will undoubtedly be feeling relieved.
What looked like set to be a straightforward final quarter transformed into a nerve-wracking affair.
Victor Osimhen had a effort disallowed for an infringement before breaking the deadlock on the stroke of the interval, precisely placing a glancing effort into the far post from an Atalanta winger delivery.
The lead was extended soon in the second half when the Leicester City midfielder climbed above everyone to power home a powerful nod from a Lookman corner.
The number 9 then set up his teammate for the seemingly decisive goal, only for Montassar Talbi to direct a header past goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali to initiate the comeback.
The key incident arrived when a high ball struck the forearm of the full-back, with referee Boubou Traore pointing to the spot after reviewing the VAR monitor.
Although Ali Abdi's confident conversion, the 2004 champions in the end fell short of completing a remarkable comeback.
Tunisia's destiny is still in their control; a draw against Tanzania will be sufficient to secure progression, and their coach will be keen to avoid a recurrence of the past group-stage exit that resulted in his departure.
