Ajayi: ‘It’s an Amazing Feeling to Score for Your Country’
Semi Ajayi scored his first Africa Cup of Nations goal on his 10th appearance in the competition to set Nigeria on the path to an opening Group C win against Tanzania, and the Hull City defender expressed delight with his contribution.
‘It’s an amazing feeling to score for your country and in such a game it gives us the possibility of getting a good start. We had an amazing tournament in Côte d’Ivoire and we are using that as a standard.
‘We are a team, we don’t need to get goals only from the attackers and it’s pleasing to contribute to the success of the team. There are a lot of positives to take from the game and some things to fix and we will work on that to kill games going forward,’ Ajayi said after being named Man of the Match.
Nigeria began their AFCON 2025 campaign with a 2-1 victory over Tanzania at the Fès Stadium on Tuesday evening. Ajayi broke the deadlock in the 36th minute, rising highest to head in an Alex Iwobi cross from a short corner routine.
The Super Eagles had earned the set-piece after Tanzanian defender Bakari Mwamnyeto cleared Victor Osimhen’s effort off the line.
With a 1-0 lead at halftime, Nigeria looked in control, having dominated scoring chances. Early in the second half, Osimhen thought he had doubled the advantage with a clever backheel finish just 47 seconds after the restart, but the effort was ruled out for offside following a VAR check.
Tanzania struck back almost immediately, Novatus Dismas lofting a brilliant ball behind the defence for Charles M’Mbowa to slide past Stanley Nwabali and level the score.
But their joy was short-lived. Just a minute later, Ademola Lookman, the 2024 CAF African Player of the Year, produced a moment of brilliance, curling an unstoppable shot from the edge of the box to restore Nigeria’s lead.
The Taifa Stars rallied late on and nearly snatched a point, but Ibrahim Hamad squandered a golden chance, volleying wide from close range after a poorly defended corner.
Nigeria held firm to secure their 59th AFCON win, maintaining their perfect record against Tanzania and setting the tone for their Morocco 2025 campaign.
