Victor Osimhen scored a brace in extra time and Chidera Ejuke added a goal to give Nigeria a 4-1 victory over Gabon in the CAF World Cup playoff semi-finals in Rabat, Morocco, on Thursday.
Nigeria, which finished second in its group during CAF qualifying and was forced to enter the playoff route to reach the World Cup, will face the Democratic Republic of the Congo on Sunday hoping to secure a place in the six-team inter-confederation playoff in March.
The Super Eagles opened the scoring late in the second half of a tense back-and-forth encounter when Akor Adams took advantage of a wayward pass from the Gabon defense, rounded the goalkeeper and fired into the open goal.
With time running out in Gabon, Mario Lemina's shot from the left side of the penalty area deflected off a Nigerian defender and beat goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali at his near post to level the score.
Nigerian star Osimhen wasted two golden chances to seal the victory for the Super Eagles in second-half added time as the match went into extra time, where Osimhen and Ejuke put their team through with a pair of well-taken goals. Galatasaray's red-hot striker Osimhen added his second goal in extra time to put the game out of Gabon's reach.
The Super Eagles' preparation for Thursday's semi-final was disrupted by a standoff between the players and the Nigerian federation over unpaid bonuses. However, that was resolved on Wednesday, when team captain William Troost-Ekong posted on social media: “We are together and, as before, focused on the games ahead!”
Nigeria missed the 2022 World Cup after losing to Ghana in that cycle's qualifying playoff. Gabon has never qualified for a World Cup final.
