Nigeria opened their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign with a hard-fought 2–1 victory over Tanzania on Tuesday evening, edging past stubborn opposition to secure three valuable points in Group C, Soccernet.ng reports.
Goals from defender Semi Ajayi and forward Ademola Lookman were enough to give Eric Chelle a winning start to his AFCON reign, although the Super Eagles were forced to dig deep after being pegged back early in the second half.
The three-time African champions were far from fluent but showed enough composure, creativity and attacking threat to deserve the win, creating a stream of chances that should, in truth, have produced a wider margin of victory.
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Ajayi strikes as Nigeria dominate but waste chances
Chelle set Nigeria up in an adventurous 4-4-2 formation, pairing Victor Osimhen with Akor Adams in attack and giving licence to Samuel Chukwueze and Ademola Lookman to drift inside from wide areas.
Nigeria began brightly and carved out the first clear openings. Adams twice went close inside the opening 15 minutes, first failing to finish from Chukwueze’s inviting pass before heading against the crossbar from the resulting goal-kick.
The Super Eagles continued to apply pressure but lacked ruthlessness. Lookman curled a free-kick narrowly wide, Chukwueze danced into the area only to be tackled, while Osimhen was denied after rounding the goalkeeper.
Despite Tanzania’s threat on the counter-attack, Nigeria’s breakthrough arrived in the 34th minute from a well-worked set piece. A quick corner caught Tanzania off guard, Alex Iwobi delivered the cross, and Semi Ajayi glanced a close-range header into the net.
It was Ajayi’s first goal at an Africa Cup of Nations and a deserved reward for Nigeria’s dominance going into the interval.
Lookman responds after Tanzania shock
Nigeria thought they had doubled their advantage moments after the restart when Osimhen flicked home from close range, only for VAR to rule the effort offside.
That setback was punished almost immediately. In the 50th minute, Tanzania levelled as Charles M’Mombwa slipped in at the back post to bundle the ball past Stanley Nwabali, exposing a rare lapse in Nigeria’s defensive concentration.
But the response was swift and decisive. Just two minutes later, Iwobi threaded another intelligent pass into Lookman, who dummied his marker and calmly guided his shot into the corner.
The goal marked Lookman’s ninth for Nigeria and his fourth at AFCON, adding to the three he scored at the last tournament to help Nigeria reach the final. It was also the first time Iwobi had registered two assists in a single AFCON match.
Nigeria pushed for a third, with Lookman denied by an excellent save and Iwobi rattling the crossbar late on. Despite late pressure, including the introduction of Paul Onuachu, the Super Eagles could not extend their lead.
Still, the final whistle confirmed a vital opening win. Nigeria now sit top of Group C and face Tunisia next, knowing another victory would all but guarantee progression — something Nigeria have failed to achieve only twice in AFCON history, in 1968 and 1982.
