AFCONQ: Nigerians from Serie A terrorize Sao Tome and Principe

Victor Osimhen, Napoli. Ademola Lookman, Atalanta. Samuel Chukwueze, Milan. They are all playing for Nigeria, and they are all playing in Serie A. And all three players found themselves on the scoresheet against Sao Tome and Principe. Nigeria increased the lead in Group A to five points, but the second-placed Guinea-Bissau has a game in hand. With a win, they will be only two points away from the Super Eagles. In-form Nottingham Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi was also on the scoresheet as Nigeria scored six goals, with Osimhen scoring the hat-trick.

After the fantastic season in which he also won the title with Napoli, the striker found himself on the shortlist for the Ballon d’Or.

“Feels good for this achievement, it was a childhood dream to be there among the best. It’s an amazing feeling for me. I thank those who have been supporting me, my family and friends. I am happy, I dedicate this to God. This is just the beginning. I’ll work hard to make sure I achieve all my dreams. All the Nigerians have been supporting me, through good and hard times. Everyone has been supporting not just me, but all the Nigerian players all around the World. I spent my holiday here and it was important to do this” Osimhen told Football Fans Tribe before this game.

Of course, a win against Sao Tome, the second-smallest and second-least populous state in Africa, was expected, but the performance of the strikers was really impressive. The Super Eagles are packed with good strikers, so much so that the coach Jose Peseiro decided to start with Osimhen and Awoniyi in attack but added Iheanacho to play on the wing. Nigeria needed 13 minutes to open the scoring via the Napoli striker before his Italian teammate Lookman added the second one. And two more great strikers had to remain on the bench - Samuel Chukwueze and Victor Boniface. Both players came in the second half, and the recent Milan acquisition scored the final goal, after an assist from a new Bayer Leverkusen player.