• Victor Osimhen of Nigeria during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations AFCON qualifier match between Nigeria and Benin Republic [Photo credit/Imago]
Victor Osimhen emerged as the standout performer as Nigeria’s Super Eagles clinched a vital 2-0 victory over Rwanda in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match on Friday, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Napoli striker, currently on loan at Galatasaray, scored two goals in the first half, revitalizing Nigeria’s World Cup qualifying hopes, which had been precariously close to faltering.
Entering the match under significant pressure, Nigeria had managed to secure only three points from their first four games.
But the Super Eagles delivered a composed first-half performance to silence the home crowd at the Amahoro Stadium.
Osimhen opened the scoring in the 25th minute. A well-delivered freekick from Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman found him unmarked at the far post, and the forward made no mistake, tapping home to hand Nigeria a deserved lead.
Moments later, Moses Simon came close to doubling the tally, but his powerful effort was superbly kept out by Rwanda’s goalkeeper, Fiacre Ntwari.
Nigeria remained in control, and their dominance paid off again in the 40th minute. A delightful pass from AC Milan star Samuel Chukwueze found Osimhen, who showed incredible composure to chip the ball past Ntwari for his second of the game – and his 25th international goal for the Super Eagles.
That goal sees the 26-year-old move ahead of Segun Odegbami on Nigeria’s all-time top scorers list, with only Rashidi Yekini (37 goals) now ahead of him.
Despite a goalless second half, Nigeria maintained their grip on the game and saw out the win comfortably. The 2013 AFCON Champions now have six points in the Group C standings.
