England vs Nigeria football match/England Triumphs Over Nigeria in Thrilling Friendly Match
England vs Nigeria football match -In a high-octane friendly match held at Wembley Stadium last night, the England national football team emerged victorious over Nigeria with a 2-1 scoreline. Over 60,000 enthusiastic fans gathered to witness the Three Lions take on the Super Eagles in England’s final home match before the World Cup.
England vs Nigeria football match in match started with both teams looking determined to dominate right from kick-off. Nigeria saw more of the ball possession initially as they passed the ball around England’s half. The Super Eagles looked dangerous on the counter-attack with their pacey forwards looking to exploit spaces behind England’s defence.
England also created a few half-chances in the opening 15 minutes but failed to seriously test the Nigerian goalkeeper Francis Uzoho. It was an evenly balanced game until England was awarded a penalty in the 13th minute when Nigerian defender Abdullahi Shehu was adjudged to have fouled England striker Harry Kane in the box. Kane stepped up and calmly slotted the ball into the bottom left corner to give England a 1-0 lead.
Stung by the goal, Nigeria poured forward looking for an equalizer
Stung by the goal, Nigeria poured forward looking for an equalizer. The Super Eagles came close in the 25th minute when a shot by Victor Moses hit the woodwork. But England held firm and nearly doubled their lead on the half-hour mark through a header from John Stones which sailed just over the bar.
England vs Nigeria -The second half saw Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr make a tactical change, bringing on speedy winger Ahmed Musa in place of defensive midfielder Ogenyi Onazi. This immediately gave Nigeria more attacking impetus as they searched for an equalizer. In the 47th minute, Musa outpaced England’s Kyle Walker on the left flank and delivered an inch-perfect cross for captain John Obi Mikel to head into the net. It was 1-1 and Nigeria were firmly back in the game.
The pendulum now swung in Nigeria’s favor as they dominated possession and peppered the England penalty area with crosses. But England’s goalkeeper Jack Butland was alert to the danger, confidently dealing with the crosses.
England manager Gareth Southgate responded by strengthening his team’s midfield, bringing on Ruben Loftus-Cheek in place of Raheem Sterling. The tactical change helped England wrestle back control of the game.
With 10 minutes left on the clock, England struck the winner. A quick passing move saw Dele Alli play a clever reverse pass for Harry Kane who had made a darting run into the box. Kane swiftly cut back onto his right foot and slotted a low shot past Uzoho to make it 2-1 for England.
Nigeria pressed furiously for an equalizer in the closing stages but England’s defence held firm this time. England even had opportunities to extend their lead on the counter-attack but failed to capitalize.
After 6 minutes of added time, the referee blew the final whistle confirming England’s 2-1 victory. It was a closely fought contest between two talented teams. Nigeria can take heart from their spirited second half performance while England secured a morale-boosting win in their final home match before Russia 2018.
The match provided plenty of talking points for both managers. Rohr will need to tighten up his Defence before Nigeria’s opening World Cup match against Croatia. Southgate received several positives, including Kane’s return to goal scoring form. After an impressive victory over a strong Nigerian side, England can travel to Russia in good spirits as they bid to repeat their 1966 World Cup triumph. With the World Cup less than a month away, fans of the Super Eagles and the Three Lions will hope this high-profile friendly helps sharpen their teams for the challenges ahead in Qatar. Both England and Nigeria are in tough World Cup groups and will need to find consistency if they hope to progress to the knockout stages.