As expected, Nigeria’s Super Eagles signed off their TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying campaign with hotshot Victor Osimhen grabbing a deserved hat-trick in a 6-0 drubbing of Group A minnows, Sao Tome on Sunday.
In the encounter decided at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo, the Super Eagles were dominant from the outset with the Napoli striker heading the team ahead after just 13 minutes of play.
Fourteen minutes later, Italy-based Ademola Lookman of Atalanta BC made it two with a neat finish before Osimhen netted his second through a penalty after the break to put the result beyond doubt.
With Nottingham Forest’s in-form striker, Taiwo Awoniyi, and AC Milan’s new wide-man, Samuel Chukwueze also getting on the scoresheets as the Super Eagles further stretched their dominance, Osimhen completed his treble late on to cap a sensational individual display for Nigeria, ending the qualifying as the country’s top scorer with ten goals from his five appearances.
Arising from the emphatic victory, Nigeria cemented their place atop the Group A table with 15 points from six matches, scoring 22 goals and conceding only four. In all, the three-time African champions won five matches and lost one.
The Eagles’ only blight in the qualifying campaign came in their 0-1 defeat by the Djurtus of Guinea-Bissau who doggedly protected a 29th-minute goal to claim all three points in a match played inside the MKO Abiola International Stadium in Abuja on Friday, March 24, 2023.
Done and dusted with the qualifiers, all attention will now turn to next year’s AFCON finals in Cote d’Ivoire as Nigeria heads to the tournament as one of the favourites to cart home the continental trophy
Note: Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone play their last Group A match inside Estádio Nacional 24 de Setembro, the multi-purpose stadium in Bissau