The Super Eagles saw their hopes of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals in the USA, Canada and Mexico fade away after losing 4-3 to the Leopards on penalties at the Moulay Hassan Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, on Sunday night. The encounter ended in a 1-1 draw, with a tired-looking Nigeria side, who had played 180 minutes against Gabon in midweek, taking their foot off the pedal after making a promising start to the game, and Congo capitalising to take the match to extra-time before eventually winning on penalties.
Super Eagles off to a bright start
The Super Eagles came out brimming with confidence, having thumped Gabon in their semi-final clash on Thursday. The West Africans got off to the perfect start in the African playoffs final, as they broke the deadlock as early as the third minute, stunning the Leopards, who had shocked Cameroon in their last four match.
A cross was played into the Congo box and it was cleared into Frank Onyeka’s path. The Brentford star pounced and hit the back of the net with a hard and low shot, which had deflected off one of the Congo players to hand Nigeria a 1-0 lead, and it was also his third goal for the Super Eagles.
Onyeka was keen to find the back of the net from range for the second time on the night. The 27-year-old’s first-time shot was headed towards the bottom left corner, but this time, goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi Nzau was well-positioned to produce a fine save to deny the midfield hardman.
The Leopards grew into the match as it progressed and they managed to level matters in the 33rd minute. Cedric Bakambu delivered a low cross into the Super Eagles box and Meschak Elia made no mistake at the back post as he fired home to make it 1-1, much to the delight of the Congolese fans inside the stadium. The score was 1-1 at the interval.
Leopards take charge and dominate
Having provided the assist for Elia’s goal. Bakambu was determined to put his name on the score sheet after the restart. The Real Betis star was presented with a golden opportunity to score in the 55th minute, but goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali pulled off an amazing save to deny the experienced striker from point-blank range.
Noah Sadiki, on the other hand, was looking lively for the Leopards. The Sunderland star burst into the box and went down after a challenge from an opposition player, which led to calls for a penalty by the Congolese players three minutes before the hour-mark. However, referee Jalal Jayed from Morocco signalled no penalty.
Both teams searched for a late winning goal in the latter stages of the second-half, which was slightly dominated by the Leopards, creating the better chances and edging the possession stats. However, coach Eric Chelle’s charges stood firm at the back and the match went into extra-time after a 1-1 draw in regulation time.
No goals in extra-time and Congo emerge victorious
There were no goals in extra-time, even though Sadiki did find the back of the net in the 110th minute, but the goal was disallowed due to a foul inside the box and the Super Eagles survived a scare.
Ultimately, the match had to be decided by the dreaded penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in regulation time and after extra-time.
Congo coach Sebastien Desabre had surprisingly pulled out goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi Nzau and replaced him with Timothy Bruce Fayulu just before referee Jayed’s final whistle in extra-time.
Fayulu repaid Desabre’s faith in him by saving two spot-kicks and his captain, Chancel Mbemba, scored in sudden death to hand Congo a 4-3 win over Nigeria on penalties on the night.
What comes next?
DR Congo, who are hoping to return to the World Cup for the first time since the 1974 edition in Germany when they were known as Zaire, will now compete in next year’s inter-confederation playoffs, which are scheduled to be hosted by Mexico in March.
The inter-confederation playoffs will be played in a semi-final and final format.
The draw will take place on November 20 and the teams will be seeded based on the FIFA World Rankings, as of November 19.
Nigeria, on the other hand, will be focused solely on the upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, with coach Chelle’s future uncertain after the Super Eagles’ World Cup qualification campaign ended in disappointment.
The three-time African champions are set to miss out on back-to-back World Cups, having also failed to qualify for the 2022 edition in Qatar.
(Goal.com)
