Saturday’s game saw Victor Osimhen open his tournament scoring account just before the half-time break, after the 26-year-old headed home a cross from Ademola Lookman to give Nigeria a well-deserved lead.
It was the Galatasaray forward’s third attempt to find the opener in the match, after his two earlier headers from crosses by Akor Adams and Lookman in the eighth and 11th minutes, respectively, narrowly sailed over the crossbar.
Barely five minutes into the second half, Wilfred Ndidi doubled Nigeria’s lead, meeting Lookman’s corner with his head to put the ball into the net. Lookman then scored a goal of his own in the 67th minute, firing home a pass from Osimhen to make it 3–0 from close range.
Despite falling so far behind, Tunisia did not relent in their efforts to get back into the game, and their persistence paid off in the 74th minute, when Montassar Talbi headed home Hannibal Mejbri’s free kick to pull one back.
Tunisia netted again in the 87th minute through Ali Abdi, who scored from the spot after the referee awarded a controversial penalty to the North African side for a handball by Bright Osayi-Samuel, making it 3–2.
Immediately after the goal, the Eagles of Carthage mounted sustained pressure in a bid to equalise, but Nigeria survived a nerve-racking 10 minutes to reach the Round of 16.
