Nigeria’s U-20 men’s national team, Flying Eagles fell short of defending their regional title after suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to Ivory Coast in the final of the 2025 WAFU B U-20 Championship on Wednesday night in Accra, Ghana.
Coach Aliyu Zubairu’s side had gone unbeaten throughout the tournament, but the Young Elephants of Ivory Coast — who also boasted a perfect record — edged the tightly contested final at the University of Ghana Stadium.
Despite both sides creating half-chances throughout the encounter, clear-cut goalmouth action was limited. Nigerian goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt impressed around the hour mark with a string of quick saves that kept the scores level and gave Nigeria hope of forcing a shootout.
However, heartbreak came in stoppage time.
In the 91st minute, Harcourt failed to deal with a lofted free-kick into the area, spilling the ball into the path of Zakaria Tindano, who reacted swiftly to smash home the winner — his third goal of the tournament — and hand the Ivorians the title.
Nigeria’s Mohammed Awal Hudu in contest with an Ivorian player.
Ghana Claims Bronze
Earlier in the day, hosts Ghana claimed third place with a convincing 2–0 win over Niger at the University of Ghana Stadium.
The opening half of the game was a tightly contested affair, with both sides sharing possession evenly. However, Ghana looked the more threatening in attack and finished the half as the stronger side.
After the break, Desmond Ofei’s side raised their tempo, blending flair with physicality to take firm control of the game and neutralise Niger’s forward momentum.
The match briefly descended into chaos in the 67th minute when Niger’s players walked off the pitch in protest following a penalty awarded to Ghana for a handball inside the area. However, CAF officials swiftly intervened to restore order, and play resumed moments later.
Aziz Musibau calmly dispatched the resulting penalty in the 70th minute to put Ghana ahead.
The winger added a second eight minutes later, finishing off a slick move initiated by Kelvin Nkrumah, who delivered a pinpoint cross that Musibau tapped in to seal a deserved brace.
Ghana held firm in the closing stages to secure the bronze medal in the inaugural edition of the WAFU-B U20 Boys Cup, providing a strong finish to their campaign on home soil.