Overview:
The defeat leaves the hosts Cote D'Ivoire in third place as Nigeria gets to four points, same as Equatorial Guinea who have a superior goal difference.
AFCON 2023 Group A (Round 2):
- Cote D’Ivoire 0-1 Nigeria
- Equatorial Guinea 4-2 Guinea Bissau
Nigeria overcame AFCON 2023 hosts Cote D’Ivoire 1-0 in a hotly contested Group A encounter at the Olympic Stadium of Ebimpe in Abidjan.
Dutch-born defender William Paul Troost Ekong was the Super Eagles’ hero with the all-important goal on 55 minutes.
Ekong, the Nigeria skipper who features at Greek Super division side PAOK bulleted home a penalty past goalkeeper Yahia Fofana following a VAR-influenced decision after a foul on the reigning CAF footballer of the year Victor Osimhen.
Before the penalty, it had been an end-to-end affair with a fair share of chances created per side.
Osimhen, a forward at Italian Serie A club Napoli, was named the man of the match.
The defeat leaves the hosts in third place as Nigeria gets to four points, the same as Equatorial Guinea who have a superior goal difference.
Equatorial Guinea had earlier humbled a hapless Guinea Bissau 4-2 in the early kick-off at the Olympic stadium.
Emilio Nsue Lopez scored the first hat-trick of the tournament with Josete Antonio Boacho Miranda adding the other.
Esteban Orozco Fernandez diverted a teasing ball from Mauro Teixeira into his own net for Guinea Bissau’s first goal before substitute Ze Turbo got the second consolation goal.
Next Group A matches:
Group A will climax on Monday, 22nd January 2024 with Guinea Bissau playing Cote D’Ivoire at the Stade Felix Houphouet Boigny (8 PM).
At the same time, Nigeria will square up against Equatorial Guinea in Abidjan.
A clear-cut victor between Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea will top Group A.
All Round 1 Results:
Group F:
- Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) 1-1 Zambia
- Morocco 3-0 Tanzania
Group E:
- Mali 2-0 South Africa
- Tunisia 0-1 Namibia
Group D:
- Burkina Faso 1-0 Mauritania
- Algeria 1-1 Angola
Group C:
- Cameroon 1-1 Guinea
- Senegal 3-0 The Gambia
Group B:
- Egypt 2-2 Mozambique
- Ghana 1-2 Cape Verde
Group A:
- Nigeria 1-1 Equatorial Guinea
- Cote D’Ivoire 2-0 Guinea Bissau
