Nigeria’s Super Eagles are not participating in the ongoing FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, but the three-time African Champions hold an unbroken record nonetheless.
The record dates back to the 1998 edition of the World Cup, when the Super Eagles came from behind twice to beat Spain in Nantes in one of the country’s most memorable moments on the global stage.
Sunday Oliseh’s thunderous strike in the second half of the match gave Nigeria a famous victory over a star-studded Spanish side.
Fernando Hierro gave Spain the lead after 21 minutes, but Mutiu Adepoju grabbed the equaliser a few minutes later with a header from a corner.
Real Madrid legend Raul put Spain back in the lead minutes into the start of the second half, leaving Peter Rufai helpless.
Jay Jay Okocha’s wizardry on the ball helped the Super Eagles put the Spaniards under pressure, and it paid off as Garba Lawal forced an own goal from goalkeeper Andoni Zubizarreta.
With 12 minutes left on the clock, Sunday Oliseh unleashed a thunderous shot – one of the best goals in the history of the World Cup to give the Super Eagles a famous win.
Twenty-eight years later, Nigeria’s record still stands as the only African team to have defeated Spain at the World Cup in regular time, after Cape Verde held the 2010 champions to a goalless draw in their debut appearance.
The Island nation of just a little over half a million souls stopped Spain from scoring a goal as they put out a remarkable defensive performance to secure their first-ever point in their first appearance at the World Cup.
