All-conquering Super Eagles stunned by Tunisia in AFCON knockout

The Super Eagles of Nigeria are out of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) after they lost to Tunisia in the round of 16 on Sunday night.

The Eagles, led by coach Austin Eguavoen, suffered a shock 1-0 loss to the North Africans, who had advanced to the knockout stage as one of the four best losers in the group phase.

Nigeria had won all three games in their group, seeing off the Pharaohs of Egypt 1-0, before beating Sudan and Guinea-Bissau 3-1 and 2-0 respectively to claim maximum points.

But Sunday’s game saw the Super Eagles go slower in pace compared to their previous matches, and shared almost equal ball possession with the Tunisians, who had reported that their camp was ravaged by COVID-19.

Read Also: Eguavoen elated after winning Best Coach of AFCON group stage

After a goalless first half where Nigeria had several missed chances, Tunisia took the lead very early after the restart and held on till the end.

A 47th-minute goal by Youssef Msakni was enough for Tunisia to carry the day, as they advance to the quarterfinals of the competition ahead of all-conquering Nigeria.

The Eagles ended the game with 10 men after VAR reviewed a yellow card handed to substitute Alex Iwobi following a rough tackle late on, and the Everton man was shown a red card.

The win is a revenge for Tunisia, who were also beaten 1-0 by the Super Eagles in the third-place playoffs of the 2019 edition in Egypt.

Earlier on Sunday, Burkina Faso progressed to the quarterfinals after beating Gabon on penalties.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now