Eagles claim hard-fought win over Angola, qualify for CHAN semi-final

Nigeria edged Angola 2-1 in extra time to progress to the last four of the 2018 African Nations Championship after a tense quarter-final at the Stade Ibn Batouta on Sunday.

The CHAN Eagles will face Sudan in the semi-final of the competition.

The build-up to the match was dominated by news that Daniel Itodo had been ruled out through injury and replaced by Utim Udoh.

An injury to Orji Kalu some minutes into kickoff saw Timothy Danladi brought on and the defender was unsteady throughout the game.

But both sides struggled to create chances of genuine quality in the first half, as the tense contest petered out to a draw after 45 minutes.

Vladimir Va then put the Palancas Negras ahead after poor defending from Danladi in the 54th minute.

After spells of frustration in front of goal, Nigeria levelled matters through Anthony Okpotu as the clock wound down.

In extra time, substitute Gabriel Okechukwu steered home the winner that took Nigeria to the semi-final.

His goal sent Eagles’ supporters into wild jubilation.