Nigeria secured a spot in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) quarter-finals with a convincing 2-0 victory over Cameroon. Ademola Lookman emerged as the star, scoring both goals for Nigeria, with the first created by Victor Osimhen and the second set up by Calvin Bassey in the last minute.
Osimhen’s exceptional performance earned him praise from fans, as he displayed tireless running, attacking prowess, and defensive contributions when needed. The Napoli star’s crucial involvement came in the 36th minute when he won the ball off Cameroon defender Oumar Gonzalez, setting up Lookman for the opening goal.
Throughout the match, the crowd at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium chanted “Osimhen! Osimhen! Osimhen!” in appreciation of his impactful performance. Despite a reckless challenge on Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali by Georges-Kevin Nkoudo, resulting in Nwabali leaving the field on a stretcher, Nigeria maintained control.
Vincent Aboubakar, a hero for Cameroon in the 2017 final and the top-scorer in the previous edition of AFCON, came on for the last quarter-hour but couldn’t alter the outcome. Lookman sealed the victory for Nigeria.
With this win, Nigeria advances to the quarter-finals and is set to face Angola in the next round of the AFCON.