The Super Eagles Secure Africa Cup of Nations Last 16 Place Despite Fierce Carthage Eagles Comeback
Former Continent's Best Player of the Year Victor Osimhen was instrumental in his team establish a commanding lead, before the Super Eagles were compelled to hold on for a narrow victory.
Nigeria survived a stunning late rally from their opponents to progress to the knockout stage of the Afcon tournament being held in Morocco.
Jose Peseiro's side seemed to be in complete control in their pool encounter in the Moroccan city, enjoying a three-goal lead with only a quarter of an hour remaining thanks to goals from their attacking trio.
However, Montassar Talbi pulled one back with a powerful header from a Hannibal Mejbri set-piece, sparking hopes of a recovery.
The tension escalated when the North Africans were awarded a late penalty after a VAR check identified a handling offense by Bright Osayi-Samuel. The left-back calmly slotted home in the 87th minute to create a frantic conclusion.
Tunisia were inches away from a last-gasp equalizer in added time, with their skipper directing a opportunity narrowly wide before Ismael Gharbi guided a bobbling volley past the upright.
Securing Top Spot
The victory ensures that the Super Eagles, champions of the tournament on 3 past instances, advance to six points and are assured first place in their pool with one game still to be contested.
For the round of 16, they will meet a best third-place side from either the other preliminary groups.
In the other match, the 2004 champions stay on 3 points, with the East African teams locked on a single point each after playing out a one-all stalemate earlier on Saturday.
The concluding pool fixtures will see the group leaders stay in the city to take on the Cranes on Tuesday, while Tunisia return to Rabat to confront Tanzania.
A Nervy Conclusion
The Tunisian defender smashed home from the penalty spot to give his team a glimmer of hope of earning a point.
The Super Eagles, runners-up in the 2023 edition, become the next nation after the Pharaohs to reach the knockout stage, but coach Eric Chelle and supporters will undoubtedly be breathing a sigh of relief.
What seemed set to be a straightforward final quarter transformed into a tense affair.
The prolific striker had a goal disallowed for offside before breaking the deadlock on the stroke of the interval, expertly guiding a header into the far post from an Ademola Lookman cross.
The lead was extended soon in the second half when Wilfred Ndidi rose highest to power home a powerful nod from a Lookman corner.
Osimhen then set up his teammate for the third goal, only for the defender to steer a header past the Nigerian shot-stopper to begin the comeback.
The key incident came when a high ball struck the forearm of Bright Osayi-Samuel, with the official awarding a penalty after reviewing the VAR monitor.
Despite Ali Abdi's confident conversion, the 2004 champions ultimately came up just short of completing a stirring recovery.
Their fate is still in their control; a point against Tanzania will be sufficient to secure progression, and manager Sami Trabelsi will be eager to prevent a recurrence of the 2013 early elimination that resulted in his previous resignation.
