Nigeria’s Flying Eagles fell short in their bid to retain the WAFU B U-20 Boys Cup, suffering a 1-0 defeat to Ivory Coast in Wednesday’s final in Accra.
The tightly contested match seemed destined for penalties until a late error proved costly.
With just seconds left in stoppage time, Nigerian goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt spilled a free-kick delivery, allowing Zakaria Tindano to slam home the rebound in the 91st minute.
It was Tindano’s third goal of the tournament and enough to crown the Ivorians champions, having won all five of their matches.
Earlier, Harcourt had made several key saves to keep Nigeria in the game, especially during a flurry of Ivorian attacks around the hour mark.
Both sides had struggled to create clear-cut chances throughout regulation time.
In the third-place match, hosts Ghana beat Niger 2-0 at the University of Ghana Stadium. Aziz Musibau netted a penalty in the 70th minute before adding a second eight minutes later.
