Eagles climb to top of their Nations Cup qualifying group thanks to 3-2 victory away to Libya

NIGERIA'S Super Eagles have moved a step closer to qualifying to the 2019 African Cup of Nations after beating Libya 3-2 in Tunisia last night which has placed them at the top of group E with nine points from four matches.

After beginning her qualification badly with a 0-2 loss to South Africa in Uyo, the Eagles have now fully recovered from that shock, wining her last three qualifiers in style. After a 3-0 away victory over Seychelles, beating Libya 4-0 in Uyo and last night's narrow win in the Tunisian town of Sfax, Nigeria have overtaken South Africa, who now sit second in the group with eight points.

Two goals from Odion Ighalo and one from Ahmed Musa helped the Eagles overcome a stubborn Libya, while South Africa had led the group before last night with seven points, were held 0-0 by whipping boys Seychelles and now sit in second place with eight points. China-based striker Ighalo grabbed the curtain-raiser in the 14th minute after some fine interchange of passes between Arsenal forward Alex Iwobi and captain Musa, who set up Ighalo inside the box to tap into an empty net.

Three minutes later, Ighalo turned provider for Musa and the Al-Nassr man waltzed past a sea of Libyan legs before his final touch turned into goal despite losing balance in the process. Mohamed Zubya reduced the tally for the hosts 10 minutes before the break heading high into the far corner beyond Nigerian goalkeeper Francis Uzoho.

In the second half, the Libyans took control of the game and came close to equalising on several occasions but Uzoho pulled off some fantastic saves to keep the Eagles ahead. However, Ahmad Benali restored parity for the hosts in the 74th minute when he reacted first to a parry by Uzoho ahead of watching defenders Leon Balogun and Ola Aina, slamming home a rebound.

Buoyed by the equaliser, the Libyans piled on the pressure but the Eagles held on and Ighalo then claimed all three points with a fine finish with five minutes to go. Selling a dummy to his markers, he fired home the decisive goal to clinch all three points, emphasising his current hot form that has seen him score five goals in two matches.

Four teams have already joined hosts Cameroon, in qualifying for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations as Madagascar qualified for their first ever tournament after beating Equatorial Guinea 1-0 at home.  They are joined by Egypt, Senegal and Tunisia, while Uganda need a point from their last two qualifiers to qualify.