A lone strike from Wolves forward Tolu Arokodare was all the Super Eagles needed to see off resilient Rwanda in a crucial 2026 World Cup qualifier, keeping Nigeria’s slim hopes of reaching the competition alive.
Arokodare’s acrobatic effort from the turf in the 51st minute earned Nigeria their second victory in the qualification series, helping them leapfrog the visitors to second position, six points adrift of Group C leaders South Africa, who they face on Tuesday.
Nigeria came to the game on the back of a poor start to the qualification race, needing victory over the Amavubis to revive their campaign. They had drawn their first four matches until Eric Chelle’s appointment in January.
The Malian was on course to pick all six points in his first two qualification matches. But a late equaliser at home to Zimbabwe meant Nigeria only got four points.
Expectedly against Rwanda, the Super Eagles dominated play at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium but struggled to convert their chances.
Galatasaray’s pointman, Victor Osimhen, thought he had given Nigeria the lead when he put the ball in the back of the net in the eighth minute. But his goal was ruled off for being offside.
Osimhen was subbed in the 33rd minute, a few minutes after he went down from a challenge. He was replaced by Cyril Dessers of Panathinaikos. Fulham midfielder, Alex Iwobi’s long-range effort just moments later was tipped off by the brilliant Fiacre Ntwari in the Rwandan goal.
The Super Eagles laboured but could not break down a Rwandan team intent on sitting back and soaking up the pressure from the home team.
Upon resumption of the second half, the 2013 AFCON winners pushed forward to find a goal. That paid off in the 51st minute when the imposing Arokadare – introduced at half time – volleyed home in the near post to give Nigeria the much-needed cushion.
Ntwari had blocked the reigning African Footballer of the Year, Ademola Lookman’s effort, but the loose ball fell kindly to the former Genk man, who bundled it home.
The home side could have added to their tally, but Ntwari was impressive, making a double save later in the game to stop Moses Simon and Lookman.
But the Super Eagles had a scare late on in the game when defender Calvin Bassey blocked a close-range header before shotstopper Stanley Nwabali saved the follow-up.
Nigeria stayed on course for the three minutes added to grind out a win, which gives them a glimmer of hope heading to South Africa.
With three more matches to the end of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Tuesday’s game in Bloemfontein against South Africa is a crunch encounter. Nigeria must win its games to stand any realistic chance of picking one of Africa’s automatic tickets to the competition.
They will also be hoping that FIFA deducts three points from South Africa for fielding an ineligible player in their March 2025 clash with Lesotho.
FIFA has yet to decide on that as of now. The three-time African champions could also qualify for the tournament should they finish as one of the best four second-placed teams in the qualifiers. One team will then move on from the pool to play an intercontinental play-off.
The Super Eagles did not qualify for the last World Cup in Qatar, losing on the away goal rule to rivals Ghana in the play-off.
