The Super Eagles of Nigeria failed to defeat Rwanda in the second game of their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualification campaign.
In the crucial goalless draw at the Amahoro stadium in Kigali on Tuesday, the Rwandans held on despite the Eagles’ multiple opportunities.
The home team’s hero was goalkeeper Fiacre Ntwari, who stopped waves of Nigerian attacks.
For the second straight qualifier match, Eagles interim coach Austin Eguavoen decided to start Victor Osimhen on the bench.
The 25-year-old also played a limited role in a 3-0 victory over the Benin Republic, yet he came on to score the second goal of the match.
Only Alex Iwobi was ejected from the starting line-up of the previous game. In an attempt to maintain the momentum from the opening encounter, Eguavoen substituted Fisayo Dele-Bashiru for the Fulham midfielder.
The Eagles were in complete control from the start, and in the fourth minute, Wilfred Ndidi forced Ntwari to make a save.
Shortly after Ademola Lookman slid past the defenders, the Rwandan goalie produced another crucial stop. Ntwari was quick off his line to deny the Ballon d’Or nominee what could have been a brilliant goal.
Lookman put the ball in the goal in the twenty-first minute, but it was disallowed due to an unclear incident in the build-up. The decision remains one of the most controversial scenes from the game. The referee signalled offside against Semi Ajayi, who teed the ball up for Lookman. The call seems confusing as the sequence of play was from a throw-in by Ola Aina into the net.
Nigeria kept attacking, but the end product was sorely lacking. Victor Boniface hit the crossbar in the 35th minute, Lookman’s rebound lacked the necessary force, and the Rwandan defense cleared.
Osimhen replaced Boniface at the start of the second half, and Moses Simon took Samuel Chukwueze’s place.
Ntwari faced a barrage of headers and volleys, but he remained undefeated in his performance.
The Super Eagles are still the top of Group D with four points from two games. Their next match is a doubleheader on October 6 and 14 against Libya.
Published by Ejoh Caleb
