Nigeria kept their 2026 FIFA World Cup dreams alive with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over a resilient Lesotho side at the Peter Mokaba Stadium on Friday evening.
The Super Eagles, playing on neutral turf due to Lesotho’s ineligible home venues, secured three crucial points despite a late scare from the hosts.
Nigeria faced a Lesotho side set up in a compact 5-3-2 formation designed to frustrate their attack.
The first half was a goalless affair, with Nigeria holding 69% possession but struggling to break down the opposition’s defense.
The deadlock was finally broken four minutes into the second half when a speculative shot from Moses Simon struck the outstretched arm of Lesotho’s Motlomelo Mkwanazi inside the box, prompting a penalty call.
William Troost-Ekong stepped up and drilled his spot-kick low and hard into the corner, the ball proving too quick for Moerane, to give Nigeria a 1-0 lead in the 51st minute.
Super Eagles pushed for a second, with Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman stretching Lesotho’s backline.
Their persistence paid off in the 80th minute when substitute Akor Adams, on for Tolu Arokodare, marked his senior debut with a moment of magic.
Latching onto a precise pass from Osimhen, the Sevilla striker dribbled through and rifled a low shot past Moerane to make it 2-0.
Just as Nigeria seemed to have sealed the game, Lesotho roared back.
In the 82nd minute, a corner caused chaos in Nigeria’s box. Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali fumbled under pressure, and substitute Hlompho Kalake pounced, firing home from close range to halve the deficit.
The goal ignited the Crocodiles and their vocal supporters, who began to sense an upset.
The final minutes were frantic. In the fifth minute of stoppage time, a mix-up between Nwabali and Semi Ajayi gifted Lesotho’s Fusi Matlabe a golden chance, but his shot agonizingly sailed past the post.
Nigeria held firm through seven tense minutes of stoppage time, with the final whistle sparking relief among players and fans alike.
The result keeps Nigeria in the hunt for automatic qualification for the 2026 World Cup in North America.
With Benin (17 points) defeating Rwanda 1-0 and South Africa (15 points) held to a goalless draw by Zimbabwe, Group C remains tightly contested.
Nigeria’s final match against Benin in Uyo is now a must-win — ideally by two goals — to overtake the Cheetahs and hope for a South African slip-up.
This victory, while not pretty, avenges the 1-1 draw from the reverse fixture in November 2023 and boosts Nigeria’s momentum.
However, defensive lapses remain an area head coach Eric Chelle must address before the decisive clash against Benin on Tuesday.
