Nigeria wrapped up the group phase of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in style, maintaining a 100% record after comfortably defeating Uganda 3-1 in Fes on Tuesday, Afrosport reports.
Already guaranteed first place in Group C, Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle made sweeping changes to his lineup, resting eight players from the previous win over Tunisia. Victor Osimhen led the side as captain, but the reshuffled Nigeria team showed no drop in quality.
The opening half was fairly balanced, yet Nigeria broke the deadlock midway through when Paul Onuachu struck in the 28th minute. Shortly after, Uganda suffered a major setback as veteran goalkeeper Denis Onyango picked up an injury. Though he attempted to continue, the 40-year-old could not return after the break.
His replacement, Salim Magoola, lasted just 11 minutes before being sent off for handling the ball outside his penalty area while trying to stop an Osimhen lob. Reduced to 10 men, Uganda were forced to turn to their third-choice goalkeeper, Nafian Alionzi.
Nigeria quickly took advantage. Raphael Onyedika doubled the lead six minutes after Alionzi entered the game, then added a third soon after with another close-range finish that effectively ended the contest.
Uganda did manage to pull one back late on. In the 75th minute, Allan Okello threaded a clever pass to Rogers Mato, who calmly lifted the ball over Nigeria goalkeeper Francis Uzoho for a consolation goal.
FULL-TIME! 🇺🇬🇳🇬
Nigeria with a dominant 3-1 win over Uganda. #TotalEnergiesAFCON2025 | @tecnomobile pic.twitter.com/5ZG0ZbizAK
— TotalEnergies AFCON 2025 (@CAF_Online) December 30, 2025
Nigeria will stay in Fes for their last-16 clash on Monday evening, where they will face one of Mozambique, Cameroon or Ivory Coast, depending on Group F results on Wednesday. Uganda, meanwhile, bowed out of the tournament, extending their AFCON winless streak to six matches dating back to 2019.
Meanwhile, the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia also made it to the Round-of-16 after their 1-1 draw with the Taifa Stars of Tanzania. The draw took them to four points, while Tanzania finished third on two points, and Uganda fourth in Group C with just one point.
