Friday, 29th March 2024
To guardian.ng
Search

AFCON 2023: Ruthless Super Eagles put record 10 past hapless Sao Tome

By Ifeanyi Ibeh
13 June 2022   |   4:18 pm
Victor Osimhen scored four times and provided two assists as the Super Eagles ran riot against a hapless Sao Tome and Principe side, Jackpot recording a resounding 10-0 win in an AFCON 2023 qualifier played in Agadir, Morocco on Monday. In the process he became the first Super Eagles player to score four goals in…

Victor Osimhen scored four goals as the Super Eagles of Nigeria beat Sao Tome & Principe 10-0.

Victor Osimhen scored four times and provided two assists as the Super Eagles ran riot against a hapless Sao Tome and Principe side, Jackpot recording a resounding 10-0 win in an AFCON 2023 qualifier played in Agadir, Morocco on Monday.

In the process he became the first Super Eagles player to score four goals in an AFCON qualifier since Rashidi Yekini’s four-goal effort against Burkina Faso in Lagos on 27 July 1991. Nigeria won that game at the old National Stadium 7-1.

The victory at the Adrar Stadium is officially Nigeria’s biggest ever win and the second time the three-time African champions would score 10 goals in a match after their 10-1 drubbing of Dahomey (now Benin Republic) horse racing today on 28 November 1959.

Terem Moffi and Ademola Lookman opened their goals accounts for the Eagles, with the former bagging a brace while the latter aside scoring a goal, also helped himself with an assist.

The game saw Super Eagles coach, Jose Peseiro, bet prediction site make four changes from the team that edged Sierra Leone 2-1 in Abuja with Lookman, Moffi, Zaidu Sanusi, and Oghenekaro Etebo all starting.

The win took the Super Eagles to the top of Group A and will be in action again in the qualifiers when they host Guinea-Bissau in September in their third fixture.

Sierra Leone will welcome Guinea-Bissau in Group A’s other game which will come up later on Monday.

Osimhen opened the floodgate of goals in the 10th minute, heading in stand-in captain Moses Simon’s cross from the left to put the Eagles 1-0 up.

Osimhen almost added his second goal of the game in the 22nd minute, sports betting app as he headed from close range off a corner from Simon but the São Tomé keeper Anastasia Bragança made a good save on the line.

In the 28th minute Simon made it 2-0 after he bundled in Osimhen’s assist which came from a long pass from Ola Aina.

The Super Eagles could have extended their lead in the 36th minute after Moffi rounded the keeper but his intended pass to Osimhen was intercepted.

With two minutes left to play in the first half Moffi made it 3-0, bet odds running on to a through pass from Osimhen, then beat his marker, before slotting into the back of the net with a low shot.

Osimhen added the fourth goal on 48 minutes after heading into an empty net following a brilliant cross from Lookman.

The Eagles continued to go in search of more goals and were rewarded in the 55th minute with a superb free-kick from Etebo.

Osimhen thought he had bagged his hat-trick on 57 minutes after finishing off a beautiful pass from Sanusi, but his goal was disallowed for offside.

A minute later, Peseiro made two changes with Ahmed Musa and Shehu Abdullahi replacing Simon and Aina, respectively.

Two minutes following the substitution, Moffi grabbed his second of the game and Nigeria’s sixth as he slammed in Sanusi’s low cross.

The Eagles continued to run riot and got their seventh through Lookman, who hammered into the net after Moffi’s initial effort was saved by the São Tomé keeper Bragança.

Osimhen eventually got his hat-trick and the eighth for the Super Eagles on 65 minutes, as he ran onto a through pass from Musa and slotted his effort under the keeper.

In the 71st minute the Eagles made a triple change with Leon Balogun, Umar Sadiq and Emmanuel Dennis coming in for Bassey, Moffi and Lookman.

With six minutes left Osimhen registered his fourth goal to put the Eagles 9-0 up from another assist from Musa.

Few minutes later Osimhen almost got his fifth but saw his effort hit the woodwork.

In the second minute of added time the Super Eagles were awarded a penalty which was converted by Dennis.

0 Comments