Olympic Eagles fall 2-0 to DR Congo in U-23 AFCON qualifier

By Tosin Omojola

Nigeria’s U-23 Eagles suffered a 2-0 defeat to DR Congo in the first leg of their CAF U-23 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying tie.

The Congolese side took control of the encounter with two first-half goals to secure a comfortable advantage ahead of the return leg.

Nigeria had early opportunities to take the lead but failed to convert their chances before DR Congo broke the deadlock in the 20th minute.

The hosts doubled their advantage five minutes before the break, scoring from a well-taken free kick to head into half-time with a two-goal cushion.

Nigeria were forced into an early substitution in the 30th minute after Zadok sustained an injury and was replaced.

Despite creating a few opportunities after the restart, the Olympic Eagles struggled to find a breakthrough as DR Congo maintained their defensive discipline to preserve their two-goal advantage until the final whistle.

The defeat leaves Nigeria with a two-goal deficit to overturn in the second leg as they battle to keep their qualification hopes alive.