Nigeria booked their spot in the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations after edging Angola 1-0 on Friday evening.
2023 Africa Cup of Nations
Result: Nigeria v Angola
Date: 02 February 2024
Venue: Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny
The Super Eagles were boosted by the recovery from injuries of Chippa United goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali and captain, William Troost-Ekong, Jose Peseiro kept the same line-up that beat Cameroon in the round of 16. Angola, meanwhile, had to do without goalkeeper Neblu after he was red-carded in a 3-0 win over Namibia in the last 16.
The Southern African side had a quick start with their short passing and movement but nearly went behind on 14 minutes after Victor Osimhen guided a free header over the crossbar.
Nigeria started to dominate the turnovers after that as Osimhen threatened again on 24 minutes with a powerful header that was smothered by goalkeeper Signori Antonio.
The Super Eagles’ pressure finally paid off just before the interval after Ademola Lookman fired home an unstoppable first time shot from a cut-back by Moses Simon.
Pedro Goncalves’ charges had a bright start in the second stanza and on the hour-mark Zini had a big chance after he rounded Nwabali from a through ball but his shot came off the post.
Jose Peseiro was happy with his side as he did not make changes and with 15 minutes to go, Osimhen thought he had buried the game for Nigeria after finding the back of the net with a powerful header but the goal was belatedly disallowed by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for offside.
Peseiro eventually made his first change five minutes later as Alhassan Yusuf replaced Alex Iwobi in a tactical switch to crowd the midfield.
Nigeria were defending in numbers in the dying minutes but almost conceded the equaliser after Zito Luvumbo found space on the edge of the box and unleashed a strike that produced good save from Nwabali.
The Super Eagles remained compact in stoppages as they held on to a narrow win and will meet the winner between Cape Verde and South Africa in the semi-finals.
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