In a thrilling football match held on Monday, the Nigerian national team, popularly known as the Super Eagles, celebrated a triumphant return to the world of friendly matches by defeating Mozambique 3-2.
This much-needed victory marked their first win in a friendly game in half a decade, putting an end to a five-year-long struggle to secure such a triumph.
The game began with a surprising lead for Mozambique, as Geny Catamo managed to score a goal just seven minutes into the match, raising concerns among Nigerian fans that their winless run in friendly matches would continue.
However, the Super Eagles quickly responded, with Terem Moffi of OGC Nice netting a goal from close range 13 minutes later, leveling the score at Estádio Municipal de Albufeira in Albufeira, Portugal.
Despite the early setback, Nigeria continued to dictate most of the play, and it was no surprise when they took the lead. Frank Onyeka from Brentford seized an opportunity at the half-hour mark, capitalizing on a loose ball just at the edge of the box and firing it into the net, making it 2-1 in favor of the Super Eagles.
Mozambique’s chances dwindled further when one of their players received a red card after a shirt pull on Joe Aribo, leaving them with ten men on the field.
Nigeria took a few more minutes to extend their lead, this time through a penalty. Fisayo Dele-Bashiru’s free-kick led to a handball by a Mozambique player, resulting in a spot kick.
Simon Moses stepped up to take it, and his precise shot found the bottom right corner of the net, giving Nigeria their third goal of the day. The referee blew the halftime whistle, with Nigeria comfortably leading.
In the second half, both teams made efforts to add to their score, and Mozambique succeeded as Faisal Abdul Bangal beat Francis Uzoho with a goal near the Nigerian net, narrowing the deficit.
Nigeria made changes in the later stages of the game, with Sadiq Umar among the substitutes.
The Real Sociedad striker had two goals disallowed for being offside in the 70th and 84th minutes.
After 90 minutes of intense play, the match saw an additional four minutes of injury time.
The Super Eagles held off the determined East Africans and secured their first victory in a friendly match since their 1-0 win over Egypt in March 2019.
The victory was a welcome relief for Nigeria, as they had played fifteen friendly matches between that previous win and Monday’s game, managing to secure victory only on this occasion.
During that period, they had suffered seven losses and managed to draw eight games, making this win a significant achievement for the Super Eagles.
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