Chelle Admits Morocco Deserved AFCON Final Win Over Nigeria

Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle conceded that Morocco deserved to advance to the AFCON 2025 final after the hosts edged Nigeria on penalties following a goalless semi-final in Rabat.

After 90 minutes and extra time failed to produce a goal, the contest was decided from the spot, with Morocco triumphing 4-2 in the shootout.

Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou proved the hero, saving two penalties, while Nigeria’s Stanley Nwabali managed one stop in the dramatic conclusion.

Chelle acknowledged Morocco’s superiority in creating chances, contrasting it with Nigeria’s limited opportunities during the match. “Morocco deserve this victory,” he said in his post-match press conference, also highlighting the state of mind and effort shown by his players throughout the encounter.

The result bookends a tight and tense game in Morocco’s Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, with both teams struggling to break the deadlock during normal play, leading to a shootout that ultimately favoured the hosts.

Morocco will now go on to face Senegal in the final, while Nigeria turn their attention to the third-place play-off.

EDITORIAL

Football’s cruel calculus was on full display in Rabat, where the Super Eagles Nigeria’s proudest warriors — saw their AFCON 2025 ambitions slip through the slenderest of margins. Eric Chelle’s admission that Morocco deserved to win does not diminish Nigeria’s effort rather, it recognises the broader context of a contest shaped by tactical nuance and home advantage that proved decisive.

Morocco entered the tie with the weight of expectation of a host nation and, on balance of chances created, they exerted just enough pressure to tilt the momentum in their favour. Their goalkeeper, Yassine Bounou, emerged as a figure of mythic proportions in the penalty shoot-out not simply for the saves he made, but for the psychological edge his presence exerted over Nigeria’s takers. Football is often a game of inches, but on this night it was a game of moments, tiny fractions of execution that separate victory from agony.

Yet, in reflecting on Chelle’s words, one detects both realism and restraint. To acknowledge the opponent’s merit without surrendering one’s own integrity is a nuanced position — one that speaks to the maturation of a coach and a team navigating the arc of a tournament fraught with pressure and expectation. Nigeria’s path to the semis was carved through proactivity and purpose the quarter-final demolition of Algeria served notice of a collective intent that powered them to the cusp of glory.

Still, football’s grand narratives are seldom straightforward. There is honour in defeat when the performance encapsulates courage and strategic intent — but there is also the sting of what might have been. As Nigeria prepare for the third place playoff, the challenge now is to convert this disappointment into resolve. For beneath every late night exit lies the seed of future triumph, provided the lessons are discerned and the convictions remain undimmed.

DID YOU KNOW?

1. Morocco have reached their first AFCON final since 2004, ending a 22-year wait to play for continental supremacy again.
2. Yassine Bounou saved more than one penalty in the shootout, making him the decisive figure between the posts for Morocco in the semi-final.
3. Nigeria led the AFCON 2025 scoring charts before the semi-final, having netted 14 goals in their first five matches.
4. Morocco conceded just one goal from open play all tournament before the final, showcasing a potent defensive record.
5. Senegal will face Morocco in the AFCON final, setting up a West vs North Africa blockbuster to decide the 2025 champions.