The Super Eagles of Nigeria fell to an excruciating penalty shootout loss to the Atlas Lions of Morocco in the semifinal of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Wednesday.
After a goalless 120 minutes which Morocco dominated slightly, the game proceeded to a penalty shootout.
Nwabali saved the Atlas Lions’ second kick from Hamza Igamane, but the Super Eagles ultimately couldn’t capitalize as Samuel Chukwueze and Bruno Onyemaechi missed their kicks.
In this article, Soccernet.ng rates the performances of the players that played for the Super Eagles on the night.
Super Eagles Player Ratings vs Morocco
Stanley Nwabali 7.5/10: Nwabali had a good game for Nigeria. It was his busiest game at AFCON 2025 so far, and he carried himself quite well. The Chippa United man made five good saves, his high claimed were clean, and he had a good understanding with his defenders.
However, his ball distribution was questionable at times, and some of his poor launched put Nigeria under pressure after Morocco gained possession.
Calvin Bassey 8/10: Bassey had anot solid game for the Super Eagles at the back. He was practically unplayable on the night. His tackles were clean, he used his physicality well, and hardly committed committed just two fouls.
The yellow card he even got was shady, as he did no wrong in that situation. The Fulhan star was undeniable Nigeria’s best player.
Semi Ajayi 7.3/10: The Hull City star had a decent game for the Super Eagles. He was rock solid at the back, connected well with Bassey, and used the ball really well.
Ajayi had a big scare early in the game where he mistakenly pinged a pass Ismael Saibari. But he recovered really well and did not let that disturb him for the entirety of the game.
Bruno Onyemaechi 7.7/10: Onyemaechi had a great game for the Super Eagles. He was faced with the double threat of Brahim Diaz and Achraf Hakimi, but he handled it brilliantly.
Neither of them got much joy on his flank, and they were large ineffective. It’s just unfortunate that he missed the penalty that condemned the Super Eagles to the loss.
Bright Osayi-Samuel 7.4/10: The Birmingham City man had a very good game for Nigeria. He faced barrage upon barrage of attacks on his wing, but he handled the pressure well. There were a couple of occasions when he was dribbled past, but it was an impressive defensive effort.
Osayi-Samuel was also always willing to push the ball forward. Unfortunately, things just didn’t work out between the attackers.
Raphael Onyedika 6.3/10: This was a game for Onyedika to make a case for himself to become the starting defensive midfielder instead of Wilfred Ndidi. But he did not show much on the night.
His passing was good and his ability to tread some forwards passes were key things to notice. But he was caught on the ball and dispossessed a couple of times. With his performance, many Nigerian fans would definitely yearn for Ndidi to return to the starting lineup.
Frank Onyeka 6.9/10: It was yet another game that Onyeka ran his socks off. He covered every blade of grass today. His marking was good, and he was also always willing to run forward and add numbers to the attack.
However, his passing was suspect at times in the game.
Alex Iwobi 6.6/10: Iwobi was expected to continue delivering his creative masterclass, but he hardly had any where to exploit in the Moroccans’ backline.
Iwobi struggled to get into the game and pull the strings as he has usually done in the tournament. Nonetheless, he contributed immensely fo defending.
Ademola Lookman 6.2/10: Lookman was largely absent in today’s game. He had one early shot of target which Morocco’s goalkeeper saved, but he did not have a great game. There were also occasions when he should have released the ball quicker and played with his teammates, but he didn’t.
Akor Adams 5.9/10: Just like Lookman, Adams had a bad game for the Super Eagles. He lost the ball way too many times, and just failed to make impact the game.
Victor Osimhen 6.3/10: The Galatasaray man had a very tough game. He was closed down whenever he had a sniff of the ball. But he’ had an incredible work rate on the night.
More to follow….