Nigeria's Super Eagles claimed a 1-0 win over Egypt's Pharaohs on Tuesday, March 26, at the Stephen Keshi Stadium and the three-time African champions had to bank on an early goal to claim the bragging right at the end of 90 minutes.
The encounter saw Paul Onuachu's top-class strike in the opening seconds of the match was enough for the Gernot Rohr tutored-side to edge past the African giants in the friendly encounter.
We highlight Super Eagles top three stars, whose performance on the night, helped Nigeria pip Egypt as they kick-start preparation for the 2019 African Cup of Nations.
Paul Onuachu: Norway-based Paul Onuachu was handed his first start for Nigeria in the encounter and the big forward did not disappoint as he thrilled the fans with his classy touches and hold-up play .
The highpoint of his game was his top-class goal in the opening minute that eventually emerged as match-winner.
Onuachu was simply a man on a mission and received a standing ovation when he was replaced by Odion Ighalo late into the match.
Leon Balogun: England-based Leon Balogun was at his best again as the Super Eagles defence kept a clean sheet as the North Africans.
The Brighton defender ensured no slip was allowed and was imposing in Nigeria's defence line as he covered spaces left behind by teammates.
The German-born defender was one of Eagles' top performers during the match.
Ikechukwu Ezenwa: Ikechukwu Ezenwa despite plying his trade in the domestic league was on top of his game after replacing Daniel Akpeyi in the second half.
To a large extent, the Katsina United shot-stopper denied the Egyptians two clear chances to draw level in the closing moments of the game after stopping Amr Wada fantastic strike alongside Islam Gaber follow up shot.
Other Super Eagles squad members that deserve mention for the performances include the following:
William Troost-Ekong: Italy-based Troost-Ekong was Eagles captain on the day and he did a yeoman's job is keeping Nigeria's defence line safe from the Egyptians. The Udinese defence ace was also in the thick of the action as he assisted defence partner Balogun in dicey moments.
John Ogu: The defensive midfielder ensured Arsenal Mohamed Elneny was nowhere to be found in the middle of the field.
Ogu assisted Onuachu with a decent long ball for the only goal of the match before he was replaced by Semi Ajayi after suffering an injury in the second half.
Henry Onyekuru: The winger will not be forgotten easily by the Egyptian defenders. Onyekuru was a delight to behold as he dazzled down the tight flank with relative ease and left his markers in wonderland.
In fact the fans never stopped cheering anytime the Galatasaray ace was with the ball.
Abdullahi Shehu: Nice job on the right flank by the Turkey-based defender. Shehu was full of running as he helped out in tracking back the Egyptians when under pressure.
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