By Ken Afor
Host of the 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), Ivory Coast was humbled in front of their home crowd with a 1-0 defeat by the Super Eagles of Nigeria at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium on Thursday evening.
Captain William Troost-Ekong converted a penalty kick in the 55th minute, confirmed after a thorough Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review, indicating obstruction by Ivorian defender Ousmane Diomande against Victor Osimhen.
With this result, Nigeria has now moved ahead of Ivory Coast in the standings, accumulating four points, tying with Equatorial Guinea, who secured a 4-2 victory over Guinea Bissau earlier. The hosts currently hold three points.
The heavyweight encounter between West African teams was notably slow-paced, marked by physical confrontations and a shortage of clear goal-scoring opportunities. The decisive moment occurred during a tussle in the penalty area, where 20-year-old Diomande made contact with Osimhen’s knee, leading to Troost-Ekong’s powerful penalty kick down the middle.
Nigeria showcased a strong defensive performance, employing a formation with five defenders to curtail their opponents’ attacking abilities. In the offensive department, they presented a greater threat, although Osimhen missed a promising chance to secure an early lead.
“We put together a good strategy and my team did it well. I think we deserved the win,” Nigeria coach Jose Peseiro said.
Christian Kouame had the best chance for the home team in the opening half, but Nigeria’s goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali denied his shot. The Ivorian team showed a lack of stamina from the start, and even with nine minutes of added time, they struggled to penetrate the Super Eagles’ defense. This victory signifies Nigeria’s first win in the Ivory Coast after 10 previous unsuccessful attempts.
Assessing his team, the Ivorian coach Jean Louis Gasset said, “We could not impose ourselves physically but it was the small details that favoured Nigeria.”
It would be recalled that Ivory Coast secured a 2-0 victory in their opening Group A match against Guinea Bissau, while Nigeria played to a 1-1 draw against Equatorial Guinea.
Ivory Coast will play against Equatorial Guinea in the final group game on Monday, while Nigeria will face Guinea Bissau simultaneously.
