The Super Eagles Book Africa Cup of Nations Last 16 Spot In Spite of Late Tunisia Comeback
Former African Footballer of the Year the Napoli star helped his team establish a 3-0 advantage, but they were compelled to hold on for a narrow win.
Nigeria survived a stunning comeback attempt from Tunisia to advance to the knockout stage of the Afcon tournament taking place in Morocco.
Jose Peseiro's side appeared to be cruising in their Group C encounter in Fes, holding a 3-0 cushion with only 17 minutes remaining thanks to strikes from Victor Osimhen, Wilfred Ndidi and Ademola Lookman.
Yet, Montassar Talbi reduced the deficit with a close-range finish from a Hannibal Mejbri set-piece, sparking hopes of a turnaround.
The drama escalated when Tunisia were given a late penalty after a VAR review spotted a handling offense by the Nigerian defender. Ali Abdi converted in the 87th minute to set up a frantic finale.
The Carthage Eagles were inches away from a last-gasp equalizer in stoppage time, with captain Ferjani Sassi heading a opportunity narrowly wide before a substitute guided a bobbling volley wide of the upright.
Clinching Top Spot
The victory ensures that the Super Eagles, champions of the competition on three previous occasions, advance to 6 points and are guaranteed first place in their pool with a match left to be contested.
In the next round, they will face a third-placed team from either the other preliminary groups.
Meanwhile, Tunisia stay on 3 group points, with Uganda and Tanzania locked on a single point after registering a one-all draw earlier on Saturday.
The concluding pool fixtures will see Nigeria stay in the city to play the Cranes on Tuesday, while Tunisia travel back to Rabat to face Tanzania.
An Anxious Conclusion
Ali Abdi drilled the ball from 12 yards to give his team a glimmer of hope of snatching a draw.
The Super Eagles, finalists in the previous tournament, become the next nation after Egypt to qualify for the knockout stage, but their manager and fans will certainly be breathing a sigh of relief.
What looked like set to be a straightforward final quarter morphed into a tense affair.
The prolific striker had a goal ruled out for offside before opening the scoring on the stroke of half-time, precisely placing a header into the far post from an Atalanta winger delivery.
The advantage was doubled early in the second period when Wilfred Ndidi climbed above everyone to power home a powerful nod from a set-piece corner.
The number 9 then set up his teammate for the seemingly decisive goal, before the defender to steer a header past the Nigerian shot-stopper to begin the comeback.
The key moment arrived when a high ball hit the arm of the full-back, with the official awarding a penalty after consulting the pitchside screen.
Although the defender's successful penalty, the 2004 champions ultimately came up just short of pulling off a stirring recovery.
Tunisia's destiny is still in their own hands; a draw against Tanzania will be enough to see them through, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be eager to prevent a recurrence of the 2013 group-stage exit that resulted in his previous resignation.
