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Nigeria’s senior team maintained their hopes of reaching the 2026 World Cup with a nervy 2-1 away victory over Lesotho, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Nigeria took the lead in the match when William Troost-Ekong converted from the penalty spot to put Nigeria ahead in the second half following a handball incident.
Substitute Jerome Akor scored on his debut to give Nigeria a 2–0 lead, but a mix-up in the Nigerian box between goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali and Wilfred Ndidi in an attempt to clear a corner kick gave Lesotho the chance to score.
Nigeria pushed and worked hard to maintain the victory, which means they go into Tuesday’s match against Benin Republic, which is the last of the series, hoping to get a win and that the result will go their way.
We rate the performance of the players who paraded for Nigeria in the game.
Stanley Nwabali – Gifted Lesotho a goal with a poor hit, and almost gave them a chance to equalize when he was involved in another mix-up with Semi Ajayi in the final minute of the game. Luckily it got diverted… 5/10
Benjamin Fredrick – Another impeccable performance from the 20-year-old despite playing at right back. I didn’t make any mistakes during the entire game… 9/10
Bruno Onyemaechi – A much better performance than in previous games. However, he didn’t look very comfortable in the final stages of the game… 6/10
William Troost-Ekong – Looked suspicious throughout the game but scored his goal brilliantly. A constant performance where he demonstrated his leadership qualities…..7/10
Wilfred Ndidi – A subdued performance was not helped by the fact that he played in midfield with Alex Iwobi. He was up for a fight and was unlucky not to have won a penalty when he was hacked in the box… 7/10
Alex Iwobi – Once again he put in a very determined and dominant performance. Ran the show in the middle for Nigeria with passing and also came close to scoring with a gritty shot from distance… 8/10
Moses Simon – Defended very well in the first half and took the game to Lesotho in the second. He had an attempt cleared off the line and was unlucky not to have an assist. A strong performance… 8/10
Tolu Arokodare – Much was expected of him playing in a two-man attack with Osimhen, but he did not fit in well with wayward passes, strong touches and missed a glorious header on the stroke of half-time… 5/10
Victor Osimhen – It was as usual. Hitting every ball in his path keeping the Lesotho defense stretched and busy. He set up Akor very well for Nigeria’s second goal… 8/10.
Substitute:
Jerome Akor – Scored on his debut and was very lively. A strong runner who gave the team a different dimension in attack since his introduction… 7/10
