As Group B of the U20 Africa Cup of Nations took off on Thursday, Tunisia, which lost 1-0 to Nigeria, continued its winless streak against West African opposition at this level. The no-win streak stretches back to 1987.
For the Flying Eagles of Nigeria, who are seeking their eighth African title, they got off to a winning start and also maintained a tradition of scoring in every encounter with Tunisia. Thursday’s match is the sixth of such instances.
But on a Labour Day, they laboured to a 1-0 win in an encounter played at the 30 June Air Defence Stadium in Cairo on Thursday.
A first-half strike by Auwal Ibrahim was all that separated the two sides, as the Flying Eagles ground out a result in a match full of physical battles, near misses, and late drama.
Despite Nigeria dominating early proceedings and carving out several chances, they found a resilient Tunisian side determined to hold their ground.
But in the 38th minute, Odinaka Okoro’s well-weighted assist found Ibrahim, who made no mistake from close range to put Nigeria in front.
The North Africans responded with urgency, nearly drawing level through Omar Ben Ali and Anis Doubal, but Nigerian goalkeeper and defenders held firm.
Tunisia’s best chance came in the 87th minute, but Doubal’s strike was smothered in the centre of the goal.
Nigeria’s energy in midfield, driven by Divine Oliseh and Clinton Jephta, helped them control long spells of the match, although the second half was scrappier and more littered with fouls.
The game saw six yellow cards shared evenly between the teams, a sign of its growing intensity.
Tunisia, semi-finalists in 2021 and 2023, pushed hard in the final minutes with a flurry of corners and shots from distance, but could not find a way through Nigeria’s defensive line marshalled by Daniel Bameyi and Adamu Maigari.
The result gives Nigeria three vital points in a group that also includes Morocco and Kenya, while Tunisia now faces added pressure heading into their next match.
Nigeria, the most decorated team in U-20 AFCON history with seven titles, have now extended their unbeaten run in tournament openers to eight of their last ten appearances.
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