Having secured just a single win and advance to the Round of 16 as one of the best third-placed teams, the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia provided one of the biggest shocks in continental football as they edged out strong title favourite Nigeria, the only team to have managed a 100% winning record at the group stages.
Tunisians achieved the remarkable feat with a 47th-minute goal when Youssef Msakni fired home from outside the box to condemned the Super Eagles to a solitary one-nil defeat.
The Super Eagles would have counted themselves unlucky, but this was their worst game so far in this 2021 AFCON championship. They lost Alex Iwobi to a red card on the 66th minute and only managed a single shot on target throughout the game.
Tunisia will now face Burkina Faso next Saturday in the quarter-finals.
Nigeria’s total attempted shots in this game was 13 which was their lowest in a single match in the Africa Cup of Nations this season.
While Tunisia’s attempted 7 shots was their lowest in a single match in the Africa Cup of Nations this season.
Tunisia might be lucky to reach the round of 16, but they work desperately for this victory over the Super Eagles of Nigeria. This could be a morale booster for the Carthage Eagles ahead of their last 8 clash with Burkina Faso who earlier defeated Gabon on penalties after a 1 – 1 draw in the regulation time.
