The Golden Eaglets of Nigeria are now condemned to beat South Africa in their last group game to stand a chance of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the 2023 Under-17 AFCON in Algeria.
On Wednesday, the Golden Eaglets were expected to beat Morocco to seal an early qualification to the next round of the tournament but they couldn’t do so. Nigeria outplayed the Moroccans in all ramifications but they could not put the ball into the net.
The Golden Eaglets recorded 27 shots, four of which were on target, and had 64 percent of the ball possession, but all those ended up as nothing.
It was Morocco who had just 3 shots, one of which was on target, and enjoyed just 36 percent of the ball possession that left the Stade Mohamed-Hamlaoui in Constantine, Algeria with the three maximum points courtesy of an own goal from T. J. Ogboji in the second minute of the game.
Thanks to the 1-0 win, Morocco are now sitting comfortably at the top of Group B with 6 points in 2 games after beating South Africa and Nigeria.
Nigeria remain second on goal differential and with three points in 2 games after beating Zambia in their opening game. Their hope of surviving the group is to beat third-placed South Africa who also have three points in 2 games.
The must-win group game for the Golden Eaglets will take place on Saturday, May 6 at Stade Mohamed-Hamlaoui. The kickoff time is 8 PM WAT.
