The Flying Eagles of Nigeria sealed their spot in the semi-final of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations tournament by defeating Senegal on penalties, Soccernet.ng reports.
From the group stage, Aliyu Zubairu’s boys have always been solid defensively, but their problem was finding the back of the net, which surfaced again today.
Ebenezer Harcourt kept another clean sheet for Nigeria, taking his total in the competition to three in four games.
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Here’s how the Flying Eagles rated in the encounter:
Ebenezer Ifeanyi Harcourt (9/10)
The Sporting Lagos Academy goalkeeper made his towering presence felt at the back, claiming several crosses. He also made two superb saves to deny the Senegalese team twice from twelve yards, and was Nigeria’s hero for the day as he helped them claim a place in the U-20 AFCON semi-final.
Adamu Bajibir Maigari (6.8/10)
Defensively, Maigari kept the right side locked for the Flying Eagles as the Senegalese left winger had his work cut out. Offensively, he wasn’t exceptional, but he had a good game through 120 minutes.
Emmanuel Chukwu (6.2/10)
The Hoffenheim U-19 defender had a few shaky moments in the game, especially in extra time. His aerial presence beside Bameyi worked perfectly as he prevented the Senegalese attackers from claiming free headers in Nigeria’s box.
His penalty kick was also well struck to score Nigeria’s second from twelve yards.
Daniel Kolocho Bameyi (7.5/10)
Captain Fantastic. Bameyi kept his teammates in the game through 120 minutes, constantly dishing out instructions whilst making sure no silly mistakes happened that could knock his side out.
However, it was somewhat surprising he didn’t step up during the penalty shoot-out, considering he scored from twelve yards last time out.
Odinaka Okoro (7/10)
Lively in offence, solid in defence. The Sporting Lagos left-back has yet to put a foot wrong in Egypt and has been a revelation for Aliyu Zubairu’s side.
He kept things tight at the back and played several killer balls into the final third as the Flying Eagles went in search of a winner.
Sulaiman Alabi (6.3/10)
Alabi’s physicality came in handy for Nigeria in the middle as he won duels against the Senegalese midfielders. He had to come off in the 79th minute after a clash of heads. He was replaced by Auwal Ibrahim in the 79th minute.
Divine Oliseh (6.5/10)
It wasn’t the best game of the tournament for Oliseh as he struggled to impose himself on the game. He made way for Precious Benjamin in the 87th minute.
Israel Isaac Ayuma (6.5/10)
Put in a workmanlike shift in midfield but didn’t particularly stand out in a scrappy midfield battle. He scored the winning penalty for the Flying Eagles.
Bidemi Amole (6/10)
Another product of Sporting Lagos’ Academy. Amole didn’t have the best time on the pitch today as he struggled to take on his opponent. He was replaced by Rickson Mendos in the 79th minute.
Kparobo Nathaniel Ariehri (6.5/10)
In the absence of clear-cut chances, the SK Lillestrom attacker was kept to shooting from distance, but his effort on the pitch couldn’t be faulted.
Clinton Jephta (6.7/10)
The Enyimba winger was a menace down the right for Zubairu’s side, but a sturdy Senegal defence meant he couldn’t do much. He was replaced by Tahir Maigana at the start of extra time.
Substitutes
Precious Benjamin (6.5/10)
Calmed any nerves by scoring Nigeria’s first spot kick in the penalty shootout, blasting the ball into the top corner of Mouhamed Sissokho’s goal.
Rickson Mendos (5.5/10)
Came on to help keep things tight in the middle of the park, but he struggled to catch up with the pace of the game.
Ibrahim Auwal (5/10)
Like Mendos, Auwal struggled to impose himself on the game and was largely a passenger in extra time.
Tahir Maigana and Simon Cletus didn’t make any noteworthy contributions in their time on the pitch.