Nigeria 1-0 Mali: Iheanacho come off bench to give Super Eagles victory

Kelechi Iheanacho was the hero for the Super Eagles on Friday
as his solitary strike in the 77th minute was enough to give Nigeria a
1-0 win over their Malian counterparts in a high-profile friendly played
in Rouen, France on Friday.

Iheanacho who enjoyed a blistering season with Manchester City where
he hit double figures despite his lean playing time came in as a
substitute for Arsenal’s Alex Iwobi and he did not disappoint Coach
Yusuf Salisu and his crew; scoring what turned out to be the winning
goal 13 minutes before the end of the game.

There was not much to cheer between the two teams in the first half
of the encounter even though debutant Musa Mohammed and Watford striker
Odion Ighalo had decent chances to break the deadlock.

The Eagles of Mali also had their fair moments in the first period but both teams fired blanks in the first half.

With a flury of chances in the second half, the Eagles pressed for a
winner and a cool finish by Iheanacho saved the day for the three-time
African champions who will now face Luxembourg in their next game.