Super Eagles captain Wilfred Ndidi has hailed his teammates after Nigeria secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Tanzania in their opening match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), while insisting there is still room for improvement as the tournament progresses.
Nigeria claimed all three points against a stubborn Tanzanian side, with Semi Ajayi opening the scoring in the first half. Tanzania responded through M’Mombwa to level matters, but Ademola Lookman restored Nigeria’s lead to seal a narrow but valuable win in their Group C opener.
Speaking at the mixed zone after the match, Ndidi stressed the importance of starting the tournament on a positive note. “It was a good game. The first game of a tournament is always like this, about getting the momentum,” the Besiktas midfielder said. “It was really, really good that we got the three points, which is the most important thing.”
The Super Eagles captain admitted the team felt the effects of fatigue in the second half but praised his teammates for showing resilience and composure under pressure.
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“There’s always space for improvement and we’ll see what we can do about that,” Ndidi added. “The first half was good, the pace was good. In the second half maybe we were a bit tired, but it’s football. It didn’t go well in that period, but we reacted very well. I’m proud of the team.”
M’Mombwa’s strike meant Nigeria have now failed to keep a clean sheet in their last three matches, but Ndidi played down concerns over the defensive record. The midfielder expressed confidence in the squad and coaching staff to address any shortcomings.
“With the help of the team and the manager, everything is possible,” he said. “I’m not worried at all. We got the three points, it’s important.”
Nigeria will now turn their attention to a crucial clash against Tunisia, who also began their AFCON campaign with a win after cruising past Uganda 3–1. The highly anticipated Group C encounter is scheduled for Saturday at 9:00pm, with both sides looking to build on their winning starts and take control of the group.
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