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Nigeria have been knocked out of the under-20 AFCON following a 1-0 defeat to Gambia in the semi-finals
Nigeria's quest to win an eighth under-20 Africa Cup of Nations title at the 2023 edition in Egypt has come to an end following a 1-0 semi-final loss to Gambia.
The Flying Eagles conceded early on when Adama Bojang scored what turned out to be the only goal of the game for Gambia in the seventh minute.
The result means Gambia are through to the final of the tournament where they will play against Senegal having won every game without conceding a single goal.
Flying Eagles caught slipping
Having already secured qualification for the U-20 FIFA World Cup, Nigeria turned attention to the next big challenge, which is to win the 2023 U-20 AFCON but in their path was high-flying Gambia, who had won every game without conceding up until the semis.
Ladan Bosso's boys began the game like they understood the enormity of the task ahead as Nigeria started on the front foot, which made the first setback even more painful.
Gambia took the lead against the run of play in the seventh minute when Adama Bojang pounced on a defensive mix up to punish Nigeria with his fourth goal of the tournament.
The Flying Eagles continued to be the better team, and their best chance of the first half fell to Francis Ayuba, who tried to lift the ball over the onrushing Gambian goalie from outside the box, but his effort was just wide of the mark.
The Flying Eagles would end the first half with eight shots on goal, two of which were on target while Gambia's only attempt in the first half was the goal.
Flying Eagles wasteful in the second half
Nigeria turned up the heat in the second half, especially after two 55-minute substitutions as Sunday Jude and Ahmed Abdullahi both came off the bench, the latter of which would grab the headlines later on.
The Flying Eagles continued to create and miss multiple chances, with Dampha in the Gambia goal being forced into some important saves.
Abdullahi was a central figure and was presented with a good opportunity in the 82nd minute, but he spent too much time on the ball and was denied by the goalkeeper.
The game carried on as normal, but VAR intervened and the centre referee was called to rewatch a foul by the goalkeeper on Abdullahi, which stopped the young Nigerian from scoring.
The penalty was awarded, and the player who won it stepped up to take it, but the 18-year-old spurned the golden opportunity from 12 yards, hitting the foot of the bar in the 86th minute.
That proved to be Nigeria's best chance, as Gambia held on to the lead to win the game despite only having 38% possession and three shots on goal, a stark contrast to the Flying Eagles' 21 goal attempts.
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