Nigeria defeated Zambia 1-0 to grab all three points in their opening group B match at the U17 Africa Cup of Nations.

The Eaglets needed to win their first game to calm all nerves and despite a strong test from the Zambians, the Nigerian team eventually came out on top thanks to Daniel Favour’s decisive strike.

Nigeria was the better team in the encounter and started the game very brightly, but failed to convert their chances.

The closest they came to scoring was hitting the crossbar twice in search of a goal.

Zambia were also resolute in defense and held their own to ensure the first half ended goalless.

The second half was a different ball game as Zambia came out stronger and while they were enjoying their spell, against the run of play Nigeria got the lead.

Favour Daniel was on hand to finish off a devastating counter-attack, after the ball fell kindly for him thanks to a wicked deflection.

The Zambian team threatened to pull one back but it wasn’t to be, and with just minutes to go Nigeria won a Penalty that could have seen them double the lead.

However, Light Eke could not convert, as his tame effort was easily picked up by the Zambian goalie.

Nigeria held on to finish the game to set up an interesting top-of-the-table clash against Morocco, who easily dispatched South Africa 2-0.