The super eagles of Nigeria looked set for a comfortable night after racing into a 3–0 lead, with Victor Osimhen, captain Wilfred Ndidi and Ademola Lookman all finding the net. But Tunisia refused to go quietly in the Group C top-of-the-table encounter, mounting a late fightback through goals from Montassar Talbi and Ali Abdi to turn the closing stages into a nerve-wracking contest.
The Carthage Eagles nearly completed the comeback during seven minutes of stoppage time. Captain Ferjani Sassi glanced a header narrowly wide, while substitute Ismael Gharbi fired just off target, sparing the Super Eagles further anxiety.
With the result, Nigeria sit top of the group on six points, Tunisia remain on three, while Tanzania and Uganda have one apiece ahead of the final round of matches on Tuesday.
The meeting marked the seventh AFCON clash between the two sides. Nigeria have now recorded three wins to Tunisia’s one, with two previous encounters decided on penalties — one victory each.
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After an unconvincing performance in their narrow opening win over Tanzania, the Super Eagles showed a completely different face, dominating the early exchanges in the northern city. Osimhen was a constant menace, especially in the air, forcing Tunisia into a largely defensive posture.
Wearing his familiar protective mask, the Galatasaray striker headed just over inside the opening 10 minutes and went close again shortly afterwards from a corner. He thought he had opened the scoring in the 17th minute, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside, replays confirming he had moved too early.
Tunisia’s sporadic attacks came to nothing, and Nigeria finally broke the deadlock just before halftime. Lookman delivered a fine cross and Osimhen rose between Abdi and Talbi to power a header beyond the goalkeeper.
Five minutes after the restart, Nigeria struck again, once more exploiting Tunisia’s weakness in the air. Lookman curled in a corner and Ndidi climbed highest to head past Aymen Dahmen for his maiden international goal.
The third followed on 67 minutes. Osimhen turned provider, setting up Lookman, who calmly controlled the ball in the box before driving it in off the post.
Tunisia eventually responded with 16 minutes remaining when Talbi headed home from a Mejbri free-kick. The goal shifted the momentum, and late drama followed as Abdi converted a penalty after a VAR review confirmed a handball by Bright Samuel, setting up a tense finish that Nigeria ultimately survived.
