The Nigeria national team has had its fair share of good, bad and ugly moments in 2024, but their most recent match felt good for a lot of reasons.
The Super Eagles claimed a 3-0 win over Benin in their opening game of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo. They were pre-match favourites to win the game, but there were serious doubts given their struggles in recent months.
Indeed, the last meeting with Benin in June ended in a chastening 2-1 defeat during a World Cup qualifier that prompted the premature sacking of Finidi George.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has yet to determine a long-term candidate for the managerial position after backing out on appointing Bruno Labbadia at the last minute due to a refusal to cover his tax expenses. Hence, Augustine Eguavoen stepped in for yet another spell in charge of the team.
Flashbacks to that ill-fated 2022 World Cup qualifier against Ghana were understandably alive throughout the first half, but the Super Eagles earned sweet revenge against Gernot Rohr’s Benin.
Eguavoen returns to the basics
Notably, the NFF’s Technical Director reverted to the same system that led the Super Eagles to the AFCON 2023 final.
William Troost-Ekong returned to the heart of the defence for the first time since winning the AFCON Player of the Tournament Award, and he was flanked by Calvin Bassey and Semi Ajayi, in front of Stanley Nwabali.
Wilfred Ndidi and Alex Iwobi’s roles were clear-cut in the midfield as Ola Aina and Bruno Onyeamaechi provided width from the wing-back positions.
That familiarity with their roles was key for Nigeria who were able to sustain wave after wave of attack on the visiting defence. Although they looked nervous and played with too much caution in the early stages as they lacked efficiency in their decision-making, Nigeria grew in confidence.
The returning Gernot Rohr was set up to defend and hit the Super Eagles on the counterattack, but he was unfortunate that the hosts had their scoring boots on.
It is pertinent to mention that Victor Boniface led the line admirably in the absence of Victor Osimhen, as his fluidity dovetailed with Samuel Chukwueze and Ademola Lookman in the forward areas. The latter will of course take the plaudits after hitting a clinical brace to continue his fantastic calendar year in international colours.
The Atalanta hero opened the scoring with a wonderful solo goal as he left a number of players in his wake before poking a shot beyond the goalkeeper. Osimhen made sure of the result with a half-volley in the 78th minute, then Lookman added gloss to the scoreline with a glancing header.
A case for the attack
The latest strike was Osimhen’s 22nd goal for the Super Eagles, which takes him clear of Yakubu Aiyegbeni on Nigeria’s record goal-scorers list. He is now only one goal shy of Segun Odegbami while the great Rashidi Yekini is clear on 37 international goals.
Meanwhile, it is satisfying to know that there is life in the Super Eagles’ attack without Osimhen, as Lookman is building a reputation of his own. The Atalanta forward now has six goals for Nigeria in 2024, and only Osimhen has scored more than his eight international goals since making his debut in March 2022.
Lookman is one of the 30 candidates for the prestigious Ballon d’Or award this year, thanks largely to his sensational hat-trick in the Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen. There is no denying that he has become a key player for both club and country while he is a frontrunner to be crowned the African Best Player of 2024.
Elsewhere, Boniface showed how much he can give the team a different dimension when deployed as the focal point. Although he is yet to score a competitive goal, he was very much involved in Nigeria’s best attacking moves against Benin and he seems to bring out the best in his fellow forwards.
The Super Eagles must now build on their best result since the AFCON as this victory sends them to the top of Group D ahead of Libya and Rwanda. Their next assignment sees them travelling to Kigali to face Rwanda on Tuesday, September 10.
On the evidence of their defeat of Benin, Eguavoen’s team is at full strength and they must continue to do the things that have served them so well in 2024.
