🔗 Share this article The Super Eagles Book Afcon Knockout Spot In Spite of Fierce Tunisia Comeback Former African Footballer of the Year the Napoli star helped his team establish a 3-0 lead, before the Super Eagles were compelled to hold on for a hard-fought win. Nigeria survived a dramatic late rally from their opponents to progress to the knockout stage of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations being held in Morocco. Jose Peseiro's side seemed to be in complete control in their Group C clash in Fes, enjoying a three-goal cushion with just a quarter of an hour left thanks to strikes from their attacking trio. However, a Tunisian defender pulled one back with a powerful header from a Manchester United midfielder free-kick, sparking hopes of a recovery. The drama escalated when the North Africans were given a spot-kick after a VAR review spotted a handball by the Nigerian defender. The left-back calmly slotted home in the 87th minute to create a frantic conclusion. Tunisia were inches away from a last-gasp leveler in added time, with captain Ferjani Sassi heading a chance just past the post before a substitute guided a bobbling volley past the goal frame. Securing First Place The victory ensures that the Super Eagles, champions of the tournament on three past instances, move to six points and are guaranteed first place in their pool with one game left to be contested. For the round of 16, they will meet a best third-place team from one of the other preliminary groups. Meanwhile, the 2004 champions remain on 3 group points, with Uganda and Tanzania tied on a single point each after registering a one-all draw in the day's other fixture. The concluding pool matches will see Nigeria stay in the city to take on Uganda on Tuesday, while the Eagles of Carthage travel back to the capital to confront Tanzania. An Anxious Conclusion The Tunisian defender smashed the ball from the penalty spot to give his team a glimmer of hope of snatching a point. Nigeria, runners-up in the previous edition, are the next team after Egypt to reach the next phase, but their manager and supporters will undoubtedly be breathing a sigh of relief. What seemed set to be a straightforward final quarter morphed into a nerve-wracking conclusion. The prolific striker had a goal disallowed for offside before opening the scoring on the stroke of half-time, expertly guiding a header into the far post from an Atalanta winger delivery. The advantage was doubled soon in the second period when Wilfred Ndidi rose highest to power home a powerful nod from a set-piece corner. Osimhen then turned provider his teammate for the seemingly decisive goal, only for the defender to direct a powerful header past goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali to initiate the comeback. The pivotal incident arrived when a looping cross hit the forearm of Bright Osayi-Samuel, with referee Boubou Traore awarding a penalty after consulting the VAR monitor. Although Ali Abdi's confident conversion, Tunisia ultimately fell short of pulling off a stirring comeback. Their fate is still in their own hands; a point against Tanzania will be sufficient to secure progression, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be eager to prevent a recurrence of the past group-stage exit that resulted in his previous resignation.