Julius OkorieFlying Eagles of Nigeria were held to a 2-2 draw in the last group match of the ongoing U-20 AFCON in Egypt on Wednesday.
Kevin Injehu gave the East Africans a dream start when he calmly slotted home a sixth-minute penalty after Emmanuel Chukwu was penalised for a handball inside the box following a VAR review.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelNigeria responded swiftly, and Kparobo Arierhi restored parity in the 13th minute with a composed finish from close range after latching onto Simon Cletus’ through ball.
Both sides continued to create chances, and Kenya stunned the Nigerians again midway through the second half when substitute William Gitama finished off a well-worked set-piece in the 68th minute to make it 2-1.
But their joy was short-lived. Just five minutes later, Captain Daniel Bameyi converted a penalty after Rickson Mendos was fouled in the area by Lawrence Ouma, drawing Nigeria level once more in the 73rd minutes of the encounter. The remaining minutes of the match failed to produce more goals for either side
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Nigeria thus finished second with five points behind Group leaders Morocco who finished with seven points. Morocco had thrashed Tunisia 3-1 in their last group match to consolidate at the top.
It could be described as a slim qualification for Flying Eagles who won a match and drew two to advance. Morocco maintained a more impressive record with two wins and only a draw against Nigeria.
Teams that will advance to the next round in Group C which has Congo DR, Ghana, Senegal and Central African Republic will be decided tomorrow when Senegal face Congo DR and CAR battle Ghana.
Congo DR and Ghana occupy the top two positions with four points each and will be hoping to consolidate in tomorrow’s clashes. Defending Champions Senegal unfortunately boast of only a point after two matches and need to fight to the finish if they are to earn a place in the next round.
Group A has produced the best of competitive performance with Sierra Leone, South Africa and Zambia on seven; six and five points respectively, Tanzania have already been eliminated from the tournament finishing in the group without a point.
Kenya have also been eliminated from Group B while Senegal and CAR risk being eliminated tomorrow after the last group matches. Hosts Egypt have also been eliminated after finishing fourth in the group with 4 points below Sierra Leone U20, South Africa and Zambia.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
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