Napoli striker Victor Osihmen was crucial and eventually voted the man of the match as the Super Eagles of Nigeria ran out 1-0 winners over Africa Cup of Nations hosts Ivory Coast in their second group stage match played in Abidjan on Thursday.

The Italy-based striker was the culprit in Nigeria’s 1-1 draw against Equatorial Guinea in the opening fixtures as he had several opportunities to secure the victory for Nigeria in the game, but he missed a lot of opportunities and fluffed his line even though he scored the equalizer.

However, on Thursday, after 54 minutes of action where both the Ivorians and the Super Eagles of Nigeria were equal to themselves, Osihmen won a penalty for Nigeria after a Video Assistant Referee review, and it was the team captain William Troost-Ekong who stepped up and slammed the ball into the back of the net.

Although Ivory Coast threw everything at Nigeria, they failed to hit the target and fell to their first defeat in the competition after winning their opening game against Guinea-Bissau.

The results effectively throw group A open, meaning that at least three teams may qualify from the group to the round of 16 as Equatorial Guinea remains top of the table with four points from two games after defeating Guinea-Bissau 4-2 earlier in the day with a hat-trick from Emilio NSue.

Nigeria also have four points, but they are in second place thanks to an inferior goal difference. Ivory Coast slumped to the third position from the top of the table.

Guinea-Bissau are rooted to the bottom of the table and will face the Super Eagles of Nigeria on Monday, while Ivory Coast and Equatorial Guinea will clash in a must-win game for the hosts Ivory Coast.

The last time that Nigeria defeated Ivory Coast in an Africa Cup of Nations match was in the Quarterfinals at the 2013 tournament in South Africa when Nigeria went ahead to win the competition, beating Burkina Faso in the final.

Daniel Ademiju Idowu