- Qualify for Saturday’s final, to confront India or Jamaica
- Safe Hands Arthur Okonkwo impresses in first Nigeria outing
Debutant Femi Azeez scored a brace as Nigeria’s Super Eagles cruised to a 2-0 victory over Zimbabwe in the Unity Cup semi-final, keeping the country’s title defence in the invitational tournament perfectly on track
Putting the recent Championship play-off heartbreak aside, the Millwall FC forward grabbed his opportunity on the international stage with both hands, opening the scoring inside five minutes before giving the Super Eagles breathing space just after the hour mark.
With the impressive victory, the Super Eagles, who have emerged winners of all three previous editions of the Unity Cup, will look forward to successfully defending their crown against either Jamaica or India in Saturday’s final at Charlton’s The Valley stadium.
Billed as the rematch from the CAF World Cup qualification campaign, memories of the two 1-1 draws were still fresh before kick-off, but a score has been settled on neutral ground. On Tuesday night, Zimbabwe, who managed to derail Nigeria’s 2026 World Cup bid, were on the losing side and now have to settle for a place in the third-place play-off which takes place on the same day as the Unity Cup final.
Interestingly, the evening belonged to Azeez who made his debut in the national football team jersey most memorable. His first goal arrived after just five minutes as his left-footed strike from just outside the box zoomed past Future Sibanda and into the bottom corner.
The Super Eagles should have extended their advantage before the break and were almost punished for not doing so when Zimbabwe went close to an equaliser early in the second half and also had a penalty claim waved away by the referee.
Just past the 60-minute mark, the momentum unexpectedly shifted. Against the run of play, Terem Moffi brilliantly exploited the final third, driving into the box before delivering an unselfish, pinpoint cross to Azeez. With ice in his veins, Azeez tapped it home, effectively putting the game out of reach and securing the win for the Super Eagles.
For the Zimbabweans, they will rue not taking advantage when on top at the start of the second half of the match. However, they will return to The Valley on Saturday for the third-place play-off.
Meanwhile, Keeper Arthur Okonkwo impresses on his debut for the Super Eagles in a match that Coach Eric Chelle said is part of the programme to rebuild after Nigeria’s disappointing failure to qualify for this summer’s World Cup in North America.
Speaking during the pre-match press conference, Coach Chelle had said: “This Unity Cup for us, is not a question about winning the trophy. I have a goal and objective for this tournament, for these two friendly games.
“The first objective is giving an opportunity, a chance to show what we can do and what we can improve with our team. There are some new players that I want to give the chance to show something. This is our main goal. The second objective, of course, when you play, you want to win.”
Among the new players in the first objective is Arthur Okonkwo, the goalkeeper who has enjoyed a fine season for Wrexham and after switching his allegiance from England last month, was handed his senior international debut.
Though rarely tested throughout the encounter, the 24-year-old player certainly impressed many Nigeria supporters on social media with his calmness in possession, setting the three times African champions on their way to completing both objectives set out by Coach Chelle.
