Flying Eagles Advance To Round Of 16 After 1-1 Draw Against Colombia

Nigeria’s Flying Eagles have booked their place in the Round of 16 at the 24th FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile following a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Colombia on Monday morning.

The match, played at Estadio Fiscal de Talca, saw the seven-time African champions display resilience and determination.

Goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt was pivotal in the opening stages, making crucial saves in the 23rd and 26th minutes to keep the scores level despite Colombia’s early attacking pressure.

Nigeria gradually grew into the game, with Tahir Maigana, Kparobo Arierhi, and Suleman Sani causing repeated problems for the South American defense and hitting the woodwork on several occasions.

Colombia eventually broke the deadlock in the 51st minute when Kener Gonzalez finished from Neyser Villareal’s assist.

The Flying Eagles, however, refused to back down and applied relentless pressure in search of an equalizer. Defender Odinaka Okoro came close with a header in the 76th minute, but Nigeria’s persistence was finally rewarded in the 86th minute when captain Daniel Bameyi calmly converted a penalty after a Colombian defender handled Maigana’s shot.

The Nigerians nearly grabbed a late winner as Arierhi’s effort in the 89th minute was blocked inside the area, leaving the score at 1-1.

With this result, Nigeria will face Argentina in Santiago on Wednesday, a repeat of the last U-20 World Cup quarter-final in Argentina where the Flying Eagles triumphed 2–0 in San Juan.

In other Round of 16 clashes, Colombia will meet South Africa, while Norway takes on Paraguay.