Omanghana
Nigeria’s Super Eagles opened their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying campaign with a 2-1 comeback victory over Madagascar on Friday, September 25, 2026.
The Group L encounter saw Nigeria fall behind early before goals from George Ilenikhena and substitute Moses Usor turned the match around and secured all three points for the Super Eagles.
The result was among several notable outcomes on the opening day of the qualifying campaign, with The Gambia, Rwanda, Malawi, Togo and Guinea-Bissau also recording victories.
Nigeria Come From Behind
Madagascar stunned the home crowd when Ehsan Kari opened the scoring in the 16th minute after being set up by Ryan Ponti.
Nigeria responded before half-time, with debutant George Ilenikhena finding the equaliser in first-half stoppage time following an assist from Alex Iwobi.
The Super Eagles completed the turnaround in the 65th minute.
Substitute Moses Usor, who had replaced Samuel Chukwueze, collected a pass from Semi Ajayi before finding the net to give Nigeria a 2-1 lead.
Nigeria held on during the closing stages to begin their qualifying campaign with three points.
Guinea-Bissau Defeat Tanzania
In the other Group L fixture, Guinea-Bissau defeated Tanzania 2-0 away from home.
Franculino broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute before Mama Baldé doubled the visitors’ advantage in the 58th minute.
Tanzania are already guaranteed a place at the 2027 AFCON finals as one of the tournament’s three co-hosts alongside Kenya and Uganda.
As a result, Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau and Madagascar are competing for the single qualifying place available to the highest-ranked non-host nation in Group L.
Other Matchday 1 Results
Several other teams also made winning starts on Friday.
Rwanda defeated Liberia 3-1 in Group K, with Abeddy Biramahire, Mickels Leroy Jacques and Mickels Joy Lance finding the net for the Amavubi. Liberia’s goal came from Sylvanus Nimely.
In Group C, The Gambia edged Somalia 2-1. Ebrima Colley put the Scorpions ahead from the penalty spot before Bilal Njie equalised. Substitute Muhammed Badamosi then scored in the 83rd minute to secure victory for Gambia.
Malawi also came from behind to beat South Sudan 2-1. Babatunde Adepoju gave Malawi the lead, Stephen Joseph Dhata equalized shortly after half-time, and Lloyd Njaliwa restored Malawi’s advantage in the 64th minute.
Meanwhile, Togo defeated Burundi 1-0 in Group I, with Dermane Karim scoring the only goal of the match in the 17th minute.
Qualification Race Underway
The 2027 AFCON qualifiers feature 48 teams divided into 12 groups, with the qualification campaign being played over six matchdays.
The top two teams in groups without a co-host will qualify for the finals. In Groups D, H and L, where Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania are hosts, only the highest-ranked non-host team will advance.
The 2027 AFCON finals will be hosted jointly by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda from June 19 to July 17, 2027.
For Nigeria, attention now turns to the next Group L fixture against Guinea-Bissau on September 29, when the Super Eagles will look to build on their opening-day victory.
Source: Omanghana
