Nigeria vs. Gabon score: CAF World Cup qualifying playoff result, stats as Osimhen leads Super Eagles to final

Fulltime: Nigeria 4-1 Gabon

After a long, gruelling game in heavy rain in Rabat, Nigeria get the job done. They move on to the final on Sunday, where they will face either Cameroon or DR Congo. The dream is over for Gabon.

120 mins: Nwabali makes a decent stop, but that would have been mere consolation for Gabon.

107 mins: GOAL! OUTSTANDING FROM OSIMHEN! What a finish this is. He brings down a simple long free-kick on his chest, spins clear of Ondele and Alex Moucketou-Moussounda, and fires back across goal and into the corner past a static Mbaba. Brilliant goal. Nigeria are going to the final!

Kickoff: Extra time second half

We’ve been playing in Rabat for over two hours, including time added for stoppages.

ET halftime

It feels like this one is over. Nigeria have simply stepped up a gear in extra time, and the game looks beyond Gabon.

102 mins: GOAL! OSIMHEN SCORES AT LAST! Fredrick wins the ball high up the field and lays it off to Osimhen, who picks his spot in the bottom corner from a tight angle. That is surely that now!

97 mins: GOAL! NIGERIA ARE BACK IN FRONT! They’ve started extra time on top, and it’s a terrific goal to restore their lead. Ndidi muscles his way through midfield and plays a perfectly weighted pass to Sevilla winger Ejuke, who slots a first-time finish into the bottom-left corner.

Kickoff: Extra time first half

Who’s winning this?

End of 90 minutes

And that’s the end of the half. Extraordinary stuff. We’ll have 30 minutes of extra time and, if needed, a penalty shootout…

90+12 mins: OSIMHEN! WHAT JUST HAPPENED? Aubameyang’s pass is cut out by Wilfred Ndidi, and suddenly, Gabon are wide open at the back. A simple pass sends Osimhen through on goal, all alone, but his attempted finish bobbles harmlessly wide of the target. A remarkable miss.

90+6 mins: All the pressure is coming from Nigeria, but Gabon are holding firm. Aubameyang this time makes a challenge on Simon on the edge of his own area.

90+2 mins: Ejuke slides a throughball into Osimhen’s path, but he drags his low shot wide of the far post. He was onside, too; that was a decent chance wasted.

90 mins: We’re going to have TWELVE minutes of added time…

89 mins: GOAL! GABON EQUALISE! It looked like Gabon’s dreams of a first World Cup were over, but they’ve snatched a leveller through Mario Lemina. Osayi-Samuel’s header falls kindly to the midfielder, who sets himself before trying to bend a shot into the far corner. It takes a big deflection, wrong-foots Nwabali, and flies into the net.

85 mins: Brentford’s Frank Onyeka is on for the goal-scorer and tidies up in front of his own box well as Gabon attack down the left, highlighting just why he’s been brought on. Nigeria have five minutes plus added time to hold on.

78 mins: GOAL! NIGERIA ARE GIFTED THE LEAD! It’s a horrible moment for Gabon, as a loose pass in defence from Ondele is pounced upon by Akor Adams. Mbaba had come off his line to intercept but realised he wouldn’t get there, and Adams simply had to move into space and slot the ball into the empty net.

67 mins: It’s all got a bit cagey again (unsurprisingly, given what is at stake). Gabon look the more likely to score; Nigeria need to raise their level again.

60 mins: Two changes for Nigeria: Lookman and Chukwueze go off, with Moses Simon and Chidera Ejuke on.

56 mins: NO PENALTY GABON! Well, that could be a moment that is looked back on after this game. Osayi-Samuel clearly had a handful of Ondele’s jersey, but referee Tom Abongile — who took a long, long time to review the footage — appeared unconvinced that the Gabon defender would get to the ball regardless of the apparent offence.

52 mins: Big Gabon appeals for a penalty! Aron Ondele looked like he had his shirt pulled as a free-kick was crossed into the box… and VAR recommends a review!

Kickoff: Second half

We’re off and running again.

Halftime

Nothing to split the sides at the break.

45+6 mins: Into the sixth minute of added time, and 36-year-old Aubameyang has just engaged in a foot race with Fredrick, a defender 16 years his junior. It was pretty close, too; Fredrick eventually makes a good block to stop the striker getting a shot on target.

44 mins: Openda with a chance! Nigeria make a bit of a mess of halting a Gabon break, and the ball falls to Openda in the area. He turns back onto his left foot to create space for the shot, but it’s a tame effort, easily saved by Nwabali.

37 mins: Chance wasted on the break there by Gabon. After defending a corner, they launched a 4-on-4 counter, with Aubameyang playing Bouanga into the box. The LAFC man chose to shoot from a difficult angle rather than pull the ball back across, and his effort was blocked.

32 mins: Royce Openda looks lively down the Gabon right. He wins their first corner with his latest positive run, but Nigeria scramble the delivery clear.

28 mins: Somehow, Gabon survive! Ademola Lookman’s cross is headed down by Osimhen, two Gabon defenders get in a complete muddle, and Mbaba has to spring to his right to stop the ball crossing the line. Referee Tom Abongile then seems to point to the centre-circle before clarifying that, no, the ball did not cross the line. Crazy.

23 mins: Another chance for Osimhen! The ball is slipped through to the Galatasaray striker, but he’s off balance as he tries a shot, and he slices the effort well wide while stumbling. Gabon can’t keep giving him opportunities like that.

21 mins: BRILLIANT SAVE! Osimhen with another header, this time under pressure around six yards from goal, but Mbaba gets down to his right and claws the ball away. Excellent stop. Nigeria are on top here, though.

17 mins: OSIMHEN! Big, big chance for Nigeria! Akor Adams floats in a cross from the left, Loyce Mbaba comes and gets nowhere near it, but Osimhen can’t hit the target with a header from 12 yards! He then gets clattered by the goalkeeper for his trouble and requires some treatment. Sensibly, he is wearing his face mask again today.

13 mins: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s first involvement ends in a looping cross that Nwabali catches well. He then kicks it straight to Anthony Oyono, who tries to chip the keeper from halfway and misses by… well, a lot.

9 mins: It’s been (unsurprisingly) a fairly cagey start. LAFC’s Denis Bouanga has looked bright early on, but Stanley Nwabali’s goal has not been threatened yet.

Kickoff: First half

Here we go!

15 mins before kickoff: It’s not exactly a packed house here in Rabat in this pouring rain, but the fans who have made the trip are making a good amount of noise. It’s almost time for kickoff…

1 hour before kickoff: The team news is in! Eric Chelle makes two changes from the Benin game last month: in come Bright Osayi-Samuel and Ademola Lookman, with Semi Ajayi and Moses Simon making way.

1 hour 30 mins before kickoff: The importance of this game can’t be ignored, and yet Nigeria’s players caused a storm earlier in the week when they went on strike over a dispute with the country’s football federation relating to bonus payments. However, captain William Troost-Ekong announced via X on Wednesday that the issue was “resolved”. Still, not a great way to prepare for a fixture of this magnitude.

Moses Simon and Samuel Chukwueze provided plenty of opportunities for hat-trick hero Victor Osimhen last time out, but Simon makes way this time for Ademola Lookman.

There is also a change in defence, with Semi Ajayi dropping out and Bright Osayi-Samuel coming in, which likely means Benjamin Fredrick moving to centre-back.

Nigeria (4-4-2, right to left): Nwabali (GK) — Osayi-Samuel, Fredrick, Bassey, Sanusi — Chukwueze, Iwobi, Ndidi, Lookman — Adams, Osimhen

Nigeria subs: Okoye, Troost-Ekong, Ejuke, Onyeka, Arokodare, Onyemaechi, Abdullahi, Simon, Obasogie, Nwadike, Awaziem, Olusegun

Gabon are missing a handful of key players, including Jim Allevinah, Shavy Babicka, Medwin Biteghe, Michel Mboula, and Junior Noubi Fotso.

Much like Nigeria and Osimhen, their hopes will largely rest on the shoulders of their most famous star forward: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the Marseille striker, who has four goals in 10 Ligue 1 games this season.

Gabon (4-3-3, right to left): Mbaba (GK) — Ondele, Oyono, Ecuele, Ekoumie — Openda, Lemina, Ndong — Aubameyang, Biyogo, Bouanga

Gabon subs: Mounguenou, Bekale, Moucketou-Moussounda, Obiang, J. Do Marcolino, J. Oyono, N. Lemina, Nze Bagnama, A. Do Marcolino, Essang-Matouti, Averlant, Meyo

Here is how to watch the match in some of the world’s major regions: