After defeating the Super Eagles 2-1 in the Africa Cup of Nations championship match on Sunday night at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium, hosts Cote d’Ivoire emerged victorious.
This event was the 34th competition on the continent.
The Elephants are vying for their third AFCON crown, having previously triumphed in 1992 and 2015, while the Super Eagles are vying for their fourth.
After finishing first in Group A with a combined seven points and a three goal differential, Equatorial Guinea emerged victorious among the two teams. The Elephants, on the other hand, finished in third place, fourth overall.
18 months after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, Sebastien Haller played a hero’s role, pulling off a stunning comeback to score the game’s 81st-minute winner for Ivory Coast, who defeated Nigeria 2-1 in Abidjan to win the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
It was the Super Eagles who lead at halftime through captain William Troost-Ekong, despite appearing second-best through the first half-hour, but the hosts would not be denied for long. After an hour, Franck Kessie leveled the score with a header off a corner, and with less than ten minutes left, Haller’s flick gave the Elephants the lead.
It was appropriate that the game was won in the last minutes of play because both teams advanced thus far on the strength of late drama. Even though Nigeria had only given up two goals in the competition thus far, they were unable to hold the Elephants at bay for the entire ninety minutes of play due to constant pressure.