Sports

Nigeria Super Eagles Shine in Fulham, Manchester United Match

Nigerian winger Alex Iwobi celebrates scoring a goal for his club, Fulham, in their English Premier League match against Manchester United at Old Trafford, on February 24, 2024.

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PARIS, France— Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi, two members of Nigeria’s Super Eagles team that played at the recently concluded 2023 Africa Cup of Nations tournament played a pivotal role for their English Premier League based football club, Fulham FC.

Bassey, 24, scored the opening goal for his London based club —his first in the English Premier League —against giants Manchester United.

Manchester United, also known as the Red Devils, pulled back after veteran defender Harry Maguire equalized in the 89th minute.

Alex Iwobi, Bassey’s teammate at both club and national level, scored the winner for Fulham, seven minutes into stoppage time. This was the Cottagers first EPL win since the opening weekend of the season.

Bassey and Iwobi were regular starters for Nigeria at the recently concluded Cup of Nations tournament that was held in Ivory Coast, where they placed second.

Nigerian fans praised Iwobi after his goal against Manchester United. This was a turnaround from the earlier criticism by those who said the veteran Super Eagles player “fell off” and listed his performance as one of the reasons they lost to Ivory Coast in the AFCON final.

This article was written by VOA’s Mike Hove with contributions from reporter Mike Mbonye. Some information was sourced from Agence France-Presse.