Once again, Iwobi’s vision through his pre-assists and Osimhen’s selflessness lead Nigeria to a dominant 2-0 victory over Algeria in a quarterfinal match at the 2025 AFCON in Marrakesh.
A goal and an assist from man of the match Victor Osimhen and a second goal by Akor Adams ensure Nigeria dismantles Fennecs 2-0 to reach AFCON semi-finals.
Iwobi’s Vision
Alex Iwobi is pulling the strings for Nigeria.
According to Live Score, the Super Eagles’ midfield general has completed 46 defence-splitting passes at AFCON. The number is more than double that of any of his teammates.
Idrissa Gana Gueye (Senegal) leads AFCON 2025 with 72 line-breaking passes, according to recent Opta data.
Breaking Luka Zidane’s Shut-Out Record
The Desert Foxes goalkeeper, Luka Zidane, did his reputation a lot of good in the first period, foiling efforts by Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen as Nigeria exerted absolute authority inside the Grand Stade de Marrakech.
A quarter-hour later, Lookman streamed past the defence after another great pass by Alex Iwobi, only to see his effort smothered by Zidane.
Osimhen’s Selflessness
Two minutes into the second half, they were in no man’s land as Osimhen rose splendidly, suspending himself in the air, to nod into the net from a perfect pull-out by defender Bruno Onyemaechi. The team goal started from Frank Onyeka’s pass to Adams, who found Iwobi, who in turn found Onyemaechi.
Three minutes before the hour, Nigeria established daylight between it and the North African country.
Adams finished with aplomb from a great team move that started with Onyeka breaking down another Fennecs’ move and finding Iwobi, who found Osimhen.
The 2023 African Player of the Year selflessly located Adams, and the Sevilla FC of Spain poacher rounded Zidane before slotting into the net for Nigeria’s second, and his own second AFCON goal.
With 10 minutes left, Adams came close to earning a brace and Nigeria’s third, with a diving header from Osimhen’s hard work and cross from the right. The ball ricocheted against the upright, saving the Fennecs’ blushes.
Victory shoots the Super Eagles to a dream semi-final clash with hosts Morocco at the Crown Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat on Wednesday night.
Meanwhile, Nigeria is the most successful team at the quarterfinal stage of Afcon, with 12 wins out of 13. The only loss was to Ghana in 2008.
Also, Nigeria becomes the fifth nation to win their first 5 matches in a single AFCON edition:
- 1990 – Algeria
- 2002 – Cameroon
- 2010 – Egypt
- 2012 – Côte d’Ivoire
- 2025 – Nigeria.
The Super Eagles surpassed their previous record of 12 goals when they were runners-up in the 2000 AFCON.
