Nigeria’s Flying Eagles secured a place in the Round of 16 at the ongoing FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile after a 1–1 draw with Colombia in Talca on Monday morning.
Colombia took the lead in the 51st minute through Kener Gonzalez, but Nigeria fought back and equalised late on when captain Daniel Bameyi converted a penalty after Tahir Maigana’s shot was handled in the box.
Goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt made crucial saves earlier in the game, while Maigana, Kparobo Arierhi, and Suleman Sani all came close to scoring for Nigeria.
The result sets up a Round of 16 clash between Nigeria and Argentina on Wednesday at the Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos in Santiago: a rematch of last year’s quarter-final, where the Flying Eagles won 2–0.Norway also confirmed their place in the next round after playing out a 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia.
The Round of 16 fixtures will take place between Tuesday and Friday.
Full FIFA U-20 World Cup Round of 16 Fixtures:
Ukraine vs Spain
Chile vs Mexico
Colombia vs South Africa
Argentina vs Nigeria
Paraguay vs Norway
Japan vs France
USA vs Italy
Morocco vs South Korea
