Super Eagles crush Gabon to reach World Cup playoff final

Nigeria lit up the Moulay Al Hassan Stadium in Rabat on Thursday night with a breathtaking 4–1 demolition of Gabon, storming into Sunday’s African Playoffs final and moving just one step away from the 2026 World Cup inter-continental showdown in Mexico.

What started as a cagey semifinal exploded into a spectacle of grit, drama, and sheer Nigerian firepower. The Super Eagles owned the pitch from the first whistle, with Wilfred Ndidi dictating the tempo and Victor Osimhen relentlessly tormenting the Gabonese backline. The Napoli hitman twice came close in the opening half, forcing sharp stops from goalkeeper Loyce Mbaba, but Nigeria, despite overwhelming dominance, went into the break level at 0–0.

Then came the chaos.

With tension rising and Gabon hanging on by a thread, Akor Adams pounced on a disastrous defensive blunder in the 78th minute, coolly slotting home what looked like the knockout punch. But Gabon showed their claws in the dying moments when Mario Lemina stunned the stadium with an 89th-minute equalizer, dragging the match into extra time and sending Panthers fans into a frenzy.

Extra time, however, belonged entirely to Nigeria.

Chidera Ejuke ignited the Super Eagles’ assault with his maiden international goal, before the night turned into the Victor Osimhen Show. The superstar striker hammered in his 30th and 31st international goals in ruthless fashion, tearing apart Gabon’s resistance and closing in on Nigeria’s all-time scoring record held by the legendary Rashidi Yekini.

By the 110th minute, the contest was over. Nigeria were flying. Gabon were broken.

Their 4–1 triumph now catapults the Super Eagles into Sunday’s final, where victory would earn them a ticket to the inter-confederation playoffs in March 2026.

For Gabon, the dream of a first-ever World Cup appearance dissolves once again. Their focus now shifts to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, also in Morocco, later next year.

But tonight, this night, belonged to Nigeria.

And the Super Eagles made sure the whole continent heard their roar.