The Benin Republic made history on Monday by defeating the Super Eagles for the first time with a 2-1 win.
As a result, The Super Eagles’ World Cup qualification is now in jeopardy. With only three points from four World Cup qualification matches, Nigeria risks missing out on the next football tournament.
The Super Eagles were aiming for a victory after drawing with South Africa a few days earlier, and although the game started well for the Nigerians, they had to wait 25 minutes to take the lead.
Raphael Onyedika of Club Brugge gave the Super Eagles the advantage by calmly slotting the ball home inside the box.
The Cheetahs of Benin, led by former Nigerian manager Gernot Rohr, scored to tie the game in the 37th minute through Jodei Dossou after a defensive mistake from the Super Eagles. They then extended Nigeria’s troubles with a goal from Steve Mounie just before halftime.
In the second half, Nigeria made some changes to try to find an equalizer, but the Cheetahs defended well to secure one of the biggest wins in football. After Monday’s result, Nigeria is currently in 5th place in the Group C qualification standings for the 2026 World Cup.
