Nigeria have booked their place in the knockout round of the ongoing FIFA U-17 World Cup after beating Ecuador 3-2 thanks to a hattrick from Ibrahim Sa’id.
Sa’id pounced on a loose ball to give Nigeria the lead but Ecuador were level few minutes later when goalkeeper Daniel Jinadu conceded an unfortunate own goal when the ball came off his back after striking the woodwork.
Charles Etim was guilty of a late charge in the box leaving the referee with no option but to award a penalty to Ecuador after a review by the Video Assistant Referee ( VAR) . Ecuador tuck home the subsequent spot kick to put them 2-1 up.
With time running out once again, Sa’id produced a moment of magic with a curler from the edge of the box to draw Nigeria level. He added his and Nigeria’s third three minutes later with a shot in the box.
His hattrick helped sealed a 3-2 win for Nigeria and also progress to the knockout round after winning their first two games scoring seven goals in the process.
