Osimhen strike books Nigeria place at Africa Cup of Nations
A late equaliser from Victor Osimhen stamped Nigeria's ticket for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Thursday while Tunisia also booked their place with a 3-2 win over Madagascar.
Despite not playing on Thursday, other results also saw South Africa, Gabon and Uganda secure places at the 24-nation showcase of African football, which kicks off in Morocco on December 21 next year.
Sudan missed a chance to qualify after a shock 4-0 loss to Niger - a result which offered a glimmer of hope to Ghana ahead of a must-win match in Angola on Friday. Nigeria were trailing against Benin in Group D before reigning African Footballer of the Year Osimhen equalised nine minutes from time to secure a 1-1 draw in Abidjan.
Mohamed Tijani had put Benin ahead after 16 minutes as they sought to repeat a shock triumph over Nigeria in a 2026 World Cup qualifier at the same stadium last year. Nigeria top the table with 11 points after five rounds, leaving Benin (seven), Rwanda (five) and Libya (four) to fight for the second qualification place.
Nigeria host Rwanda on Monday at the same time as Libya will have a home advantage over Benin. Libya got back into contention by beating Rwanda 1-0 through a late Fahd Mohamed goal in Kigali.
A thrilling 3-2 victory for South Sudan over Congo Brazzaville in Juba ensured Uganda and South Africa would qualify from Group K before they meet on Friday in Kampala.
Congo, needing maximum points to keep their slim hopes alive, twice surrendered the lead before being reduced to 10 men on 78 minutes when Bryan Passi was sent off. South Sudan took full advantage of having an extra man to snatch victory soon after through substitute Data Elly.