Title favourites Nigeria on Sunday, crashed out of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Garoua, Cameroon, after a painful 0-1 loss to Tunisia who now advance to the competition’s quarter-final stage.
In the Round of 16 match at the Stade Roumde Adjia, the Super Eagles who went with high hopes after winning all their games at the preliminary stages, and garnered all of the nine points, failed to raise their game against a more technically superior Tunisia and fell to the team they were not expected to lose to.
The Eagles of the Carthage in North Africa were not expected to win, given the depletion they had witnessed.
Moreover, they had squeezed through to the knockout stage as one of the best third-placed teams.
But the Super Eagles who had won their first three games sauntered through the first half.
Their wings were clipped as Moses Simon and Samuel Chukwueze were just rambling on the flanks.
Kelechi Iheanacho and Taiwo Awoniyi were not better in the central area of the Nigerian side’s attack, and they were easily dispossessed of the ball.
After a goalless first half, during which they mostly sat back, team captain Youssef Msakni gave the Tunisians the lead two minutes after the restart.
Maskni beat one defender and found space to shoot from outside the penalty area.
Goalkeeper Emil Okoye only had a touch on the ball but failed to stop it from resting in the net.
The complexion of the game changed when substitute Alexander Iwobi was sent off after the 66th minute, seven minutes after coming on for Iheanacho, following a tackle on Msakni.
The Super Eagles fought back, but the Tunisians defended as a unit, and withstood the waves of Nigerian attacks which were mostly feeble and uncoordinated.
And this was in spite of the introduction of Peter Olayinka for Awoniyi (59th minute), Sadiq Umar for Chukwueze (74th minute) and Ahmed Musa for Joe Aribo (88th minute).
Rather, it was even the Tunisians who threatened to increase their lead, with Okoye on hand to punch away a well-struck Naim Sliti shot after 74 minutes.
But Simon did have a chance to level matters for Nigeria, when his free-kick from just outside the penalty area missed the target.
Also, Umar had his shot missing the target by inches late in the game, just as Wilfred Ndidi also missed target in the third minute of five added minutes.
Tunisia who won the AFCON title in 2004 will now face Burkina-Faso in the quarter-finals stage on Saturday in Garoua.