Nigeria will not take part in next year’s African Nations Championship in Algeria following a penalty loss to Ghana in Abuja on Saturday, Abbeylivenetwork.com reports.
The Super Eagles B team came close but eventually lost out on penalties after a flaming battle with the Black Galaxies of Ghana ended in penalty shoot-out heartache at the MKO Abiola National Stadium, Abuja on Saturday evening.
Ghana won the first leg in Cape Coast 2-0 courtesy of a penalty kick award early in the second half and a late goal scored on the counter, and opted for a contain-and-counter strategy in Nigeria’s capital.
The Eagles went close to opening the goal account and put the Black Galaxies under immense pressure but a good shot hit the side netting in the 26th minute.
Despite the best efforts of the home-based Super Eagles , the first half ended scoreless.
Zilkifilu Mohammed however scored for the Eagles in the 76th minute to restore Nigeria’s hopes of a comeback.
Chijioke Akuneto made it 2-0 and 2-2 on aggregate four minutes into added time to take the contest into penalty shootout.
The Ghanaians prevailed 5-4 on penalties to qualify for the African Nations Championship in Algeria.
