Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has stressed that Nigeria still have room for improvement at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, despite beginning their campaign with a hard-fought 2–1 victory over Tanzania on Tuesday.
Forty-five years after defeating the Taifa Stars 3–1 in the opening match of the 1980 AFCON in Lagos, Nigeria had to work hard to secure another opening-day win, edging Tanzania at the Complexe Sportif de Fès in Morocco.
Centre-back Semi Ajayi put the Super Eagles ahead in the 36th minute, heading in Alex Iwobi’s inswinging corner for his second international goal. Tanzania quickly equalised through Charles M’Mombwa shortly after the restart, but former African Footballer of the Year Ademola Lookman restored Nigeria’s lead almost immediately. Nigeria held on in the closing stages, showing composure and defensive resolve as they launched their quest for a fourth AFCON title.
Despite the win, Chelle was critical of his team’s overall display, particularly in the second half. He noted that Nigeria failed to build on a dominant first half, where they had created several clear scoring opportunities.
“We have to analyse this win because we did a lot of good things in the first half to create chances to score,” Chelle said after the match. “We had many opportunities, but in the second half we gave Tanzania the chance to come back into the game. We made two mistakes.”
He added, “Of course we are happy with the three points, but at AFCON, the most important thing is to improve with every game. After our analysis, we have to continue to improve.”
Nigeria will next face Tunisia on Saturday, and Chelle anticipates a tougher challenge against the North Africans.
“Tunisia are a big team,” he said. “We have to improve defensively, and we need more movement both when we have the ball and when we don’t. I congratulate my players for the win, but we still have a lot of work to do.”
Runners-up at the last AFCON after losing 2–1 to hosts Ivory Coast, Nigeria are aiming for a fourth continental crown, having previously lifted the trophy in 1980, 1994, and 2013.
