CAR 0 Nigeria 2 : Leon Balogun, Osimhen on target as Super Eagles redeem their reputation with a win against Wild beasts

Nigeria's quest to reach the crucial last round of qualifiers in the 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign was boosted Sunday afternoon with a heartwarming 2-0 win over Central African Republic at the Japoma Main Stadium Yaounde, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

Goals from Leon Balogun and Victor Osimhen ensured that they remained in pole position to win the group and qualify for the second round with only two games remaining.

Nigeria started the game with intent and before long had the opponent pinned to their own half of the pitch, a clear statement of seeking revenge over the reverse fixture last Thursday.

Rangers defender Leon Balogun silenced his Super Eagles critics when he netted his first ever goal for Nigeria.

Balogun who was partly at fault in the late goal scored by the Central African Republic in Lagos reddened himself when he fired home from close range from a Frank Onyeka lofted pass into the opponents' box.

However, Osimhen doubled Nigeria's lead with barely the last kick of the first half when he latched onto a pass from William Troost Ekong.

The duo of Kelechi Iheanacho and Ahmed Musa combined beautifully five minutes into the second half but the latter chose to go for a reverse pass to Victor Osimhen when an attempt at goal himself would have sufficed. The ball was duly cleared by the hosts.

Seven minutes later, Osimhen rounded the Central African Republic's goalkeeper after a lofted pass by Joe Aribo but the ball was eventually cleared by the captain of the Central African Republic side.

The hosts had a glorious chance themselves to reduce the areas but it was the Super Eagles that had better chances towards the end of the game with the twinkle toed Chidera Ejuke creating all sorts of troubles for the opposition defenders.

The Super Eagles now have nine points from four games in the 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign and would face Cape Verde and Liberia in November.