Super Eagles of Nigeria, Wednesday, defeated the Bafana Bafana of South Africa 4-2 on penalties to qualify for the final of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
The match ended 1-1 after extra time and Nigeria will face hosts Ivory Coast in the final on Sunday.
The goals came from penalties with captain William Troost-Ekong scoring after 67 minutes for Nigeria and Teboho Mokoena equalized from a 90th-minute spot-kick.
This is the fourth time since 2000 that the Super Eagles will be defeating Bafana Bafana in a group match. Super Eagles beat Bafana Bafana (The Boys) 2-0 in a 2000 semi-final in Nigeria, 4-0 in a group match four years later in Tunisia and 2-1 in a 2019 quarter-final in Egypt.
Therefore, the three-time champions entered the match with a perfect record against South Africa in the premier African football competition having won three previous meetings.
The game ended with South Africa finishing with 10 men against Nigeria’s 11, when Grant Kekana was sent off on 115 minutes for a last-defender foul.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria will play against the Elephants of Cote D’Ivoire on Sunday in the final lap of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
This comes after both teams defeated their opponents in their respective semi-final fixtures to set up a date in the final.
Cote D’Ivoire and Nigeria had earlier met in the group stage of the competition with Super Eagles triumphing over the hosts 1-0.