March 27, (THEWILL) – Nigeria regained their lead in Group A of the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers with a 1-0 victory over Guinea-Bissau at the Estadio 24 de Setembro in Bissau, on Monday evening.
Moses Simon’s first-half penalty secured the win for the Super Eagles and took them to the top of the standings with nine points. Guinea-Bissau are second with seven points, while Sierra Leone and Sao Tome & Principe are in third and fourth place, respectively.
Coach Jose Peseiro made several changes to his starting lineup compared to their last meeting with Guinea-Bissau, with Moses Simon, Frank Onyeka, and Terem Moffi coming into the starting XI. The visitors were in a hurry to exploit any attacking opportunities in the opening quarter and they took the lead in the 30th minute with a penalty from Simon after a late sliding challenge from Guinea-Bissau’s Fali Cande.
Although Guinea-Bissau tried to find a better attacking rhythm in the second half, they were unable to draw Nigeria goalkeeper, Francis Uzoho, into any serious action. The Super Eagles almost doubled their lead 15 minutes into the second half, but Victor Osimhen’s low shot hit the post.
The game ended with a narrow but deserving victory for Nigeria, who are now one step closer to qualifying for the AFCON tournament to be played in the Ivory Coast in 2024.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
