Victor Osimhen scored 4 times to ensure that the Super Eagles of Nigeria continue their superb run in the ongoing TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations, Cote d’Ivoire 2023, qualifiers.
Nigeria thrashed lowly-ranked São Tomé and Príncipe by 10 goals to nil at the Stade Adrar in Morocco in the second Group A match on Monday, June 13, 2022.
The super Eagles dominated the entire game in what looked like a training session for the three-time African champions. Nigeria had 66% possession as against 34% for the home side, who were playing away from home in Morocco.
AS Napoli attacker, Victor Osimhen, was the thorn in the flesh of the Sao Tome side which struggled to contain the attacking threat posed by the deadly striker. He opened the scoring on the 9th minute before Moses Simon made it 2-0 in the 28th minute mark. Terem Moffi made it 3-0 in the 43rd minute to give the Super Eagles a deserved 3-0 first half advantage.
After recess, the home side tried to put passes together in bit to pull some of the goals back but could not break the Super Eagles defense. Victor Osimhen got his second in the 48th minute to make it 4-0. The Napoli striker scored again in the 65th and 84th minute to ensure that the Super Eagles earned a historic victory over the unfancied side.
Osimhen’s 4 goals in the game today sent his tally to 5 in just two of the 2023 AFCON qualifying matches played so far. The striker should have had more goals as three of his goals were ruled out for offside but he also provided two assists in the game.
Terem Moffi scored his second in the 60th minute while Etebo and Lookman were also on the scoresheet for the Super Eagles.
Nigeria added the tenth goal in injury time by Emmanuel Dennis who converted from the spot after he was fouled in the 18-yeard box to silence the underdogs and bury their hopes of qualification to Cote d’Ivoire.
Meanwhile, Nigeria staged a first-half comeback to defeat a difficult Sierra Leone side in the opening Group A game of the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Abuja last week.
Goals from Alex Iwobi and Victor Osimhen saw the Super Eagles cancel out Jonathan Morsay’s lead to record a 2-1 victory under new coach Jose Peseiro at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium. Nigeria now tops Group A with 6 points plus a goal difference of 11.
On the other hand, today’s defeat meant Sao Tome and Principe has now conceded 15 goals and scored 1 in the first two games of the qualifiers. Last week, Guinea Bissau thrashed Sao Tome and Principe 5-1 to open their account in the qualifications in the Group A game in style.
Sierra Leone vs Guinea Bissau – a crucial zonal derby
Meanwhile, at 16:00 hrs GMT, Sierra Leone will clash with Guinea Bissau in an important match in the second Group A match of the qualifiers for the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations.
Defeated 2-1 by Nigeria, the Leone Stars need to revive their campaign against the Djurtus who made light work of Sao Tome and Principe with a 5-1 win.
In this very interesting group, where the search for the top two slots would be very tight, Sierra Leone, which returned to the final phase of the AFCON in 2021 after an absence that lasted 25 years, has no room for error on Monday.
In Cameroon, despite their elimination in the first round, the Leone Stars left a good impression hinged on being able to hold two big sides of African football, Algeria (0-0) and Côte d’Ivoire (2-2).
Narrowly missing qualification in the second round after a 1-0 defeat to Equatorial Guinea, the Leone Stars must avoid moving away from the elite of African football and that means qualifying for the AFCON next year scheduled for Cote d’Ivoire.
And that is why it is necessary to gain the points against Guinea Bissau, which has become a regular in the final stages of the AFCON since 2017 after taking part in the last three editions.
As Nigeria is the favorite to win Group A, the battle between the two teams at the General Lansana Conté Conakry Stadium in Guinea will be epic.
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