The Super Eagles of Nigeria are now the early group leaders of group B of the CAF Russia World Cup 2018 qualifiers after Algeria were held at home by Cameroon.

Nigeria secured a hard fought 2-1 win over Zambia in Ndola in the first game of group B, widely regarded as the toughest group in the qualifying series for African nations.

Super Eagles will remain top ahead of the second round of matches in the group which will take place in November, with Nigeria taking on Algeria on the 12th in Uyo while Cameroon welcome Zambia to Limbe on same day.

Algeria and Cameroon both had chances to go top as joint leaders with Nigeria when they took on each other in Algiers. Victory would have taken either of them top of the group but they settled for a 1-1 draw.

The Desert Foxes took the lead in the 7th minute courtesy of El-Arbi Hilal Soudani but Cameroon ensured a share of the spoils when Benjamin Moukandjo equalised in the 21st minute.

Oghenekaro Etebo who scored four goals for Nigeria in their 5-4 win over Japan at the Rio 2016 Olympics marked his return to competitive football with a goal in Feirense Cup win over Tondela.

Etebo has been struggling to shake off the hamstring injury that brought about a premature end to his participation at the Olympics with Nigeria, but that appears to have been buried for good.

Snubbed by Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr in the list for the players who defeated Zambia 2-1 in Ndola. He fired in his side second goal in the 64th minute as they put 9 man Tondela to the sword.

His goal will serve as a timely reminder to Rohr ahead of Nigeria’s next game against Algeria in November, where he is expected to be in the squad for what will be the second meaningful game for the new Super Eagles coach.

Brown Ideye was far from impressed after being substituted by manager Gernot Rohr as Nigeria got off to a flying start in the race to be at World Cup 2018 in Russia with a 2-1 win away to Zambia.

Goals from Kelechi Iheanacho and Alex Iwobi gave Nigeria the victory but Ideye who claimed the assist for Nigeria’s second goal scored by Iheanacho was unhappy when he was hooked off.

Ideye was replaced by defensive midfielder Anderson Esiti after Zambia pulled a goal back in the second half and, the Olympiakos striker showed his displeasure by kicking a water bottle in anger on his way to the bench.

Owngoalnigeria.com correspondent revealed that the 27 year old didn’t stop shaking his head after taking his spot on the bench of Nigeria.

The former West Brom record buy is back in the national team after a two year absence and he cleared showed his frustration at being substituted at a time he felt he was doing what was expected of him as the lone striker.

He reluctantly shook the hands of his teammates on the bench before taking his spot, although his actions didn’t seem to bother manager Gernot Rohr.

Nigeria’s dynamic attacking duo of Alex Iwobi and Kelechi Iheanacho were too strong for Zambia as they were both on target for the Super Eagles in a 2-1 win over the Chipolopolo of Zambia.

Arsenal whizkid Iwobi opened scoring for Nigeria in the 31st minute before Iheanacho who scored the decisive goal for Manchester City in the Manchester Derby 2-1 victory over Manchester United, fired home a second before the half time break.

Although Zambia pulled a goal back through Collins Mbesuma. The Super Eagles of Nigeria showed doggedness in seeing the game out on a 2-1 score line.

Coach of Zambia Wedson Nyirenda speaking after the game lamented his team inability to take their chances but also salute the lethal combo of Iwobi and Iheanacho.

” We couldn’t take the chances we created but I must say as well that Nigeria, going forward in the final third, the accuracy of their passing, especially the duo of Iwobi and Iheanacho was exceptional” He said.

” Defensively we were also poor in the first half. We have seen areas we need to fix before our next game. Hopefully we will come out stronger and better from this defeat”.

The Super Eagles of Nigeria started their World Cup 2018 qualifiers with a hard earned 2-1 win away to Zambia in Ndola. Courtesy of goals from Alex Iwobi and Kelechi Iheanacho.

Collins Mbesuma pulled a goal back for the Chipolopolo but Nigeria survived a wave of second half onslaught to nick all three point.

Owngoalnigeria.com rate the players on parade for Nigeria.

Carl Ikeme: Man of The Match display by the Wolverhampton Wanderers net minder. Thrice kept Nigeria in the game with point blank save. Two from headers and another a one on one chance. Who still needs Vincent Enyeama? Certainly not Nigeria, at least for now…. 9/10

Wilfred Ndidi: Solid but far from spectacular display for the Genk central defender cum midfielder, who was surprisingly drafted in as a full back at the expense of Musa Mohammed. Showed good defending skills in not conceding fouls around the box. Did enough to earn a rating above average….6.5/10

Elderson Echiejile: Didn’t go forward as he loves to, targeted by the Zambians who had joy running at the full back. Suspect all through the game but was on hand thrice to bail out the central defenders when Zambia threatened through the middle….5.5/10

Kenneth Omeruo: Did enough to show his class early on but undid some of his good job with a careless act of defending, which Mbesuma profited from to pull a goal back for Zambia. Need to be decisive under pressure and should also learn to attack balls in the box and not wait for them to drop….6/10

William Troost Ekong: Strong in tackles and dominant in the air. Dovetailed nicely with Omeruo but still need to add finesse to his defending. Quick off the ground but struggled to match the strength of Mbesuma in one on one duels….6.5/10

Eddy Onazi: Had an erratic display in the first half, failing to shield the back four properly, constantly caught out of position but recovered to post a decent display in the second half. Still need to be calm in possession and play simple when the need arises….6.5/10

Mikel Obi: Came close to scoring with a well hit volley in the second half and made a well timed tackle to deny Zambia a chance in the box. He drove the team in the middle as a captain, combining defending and attacking to good effect. Had a hand in the second goal scored by Nigeria….7.5/10

Moses Simon: Started the game on a bright note, by running at the defenders of Zambia with pace and tricks but his wastefulness when it comes to crossing into the box blotted his fine display. Tired out in the first half and deservedly hooked off for Ahmed Musa….6/10

Alex Iwobi: So easy to spot when on the ball due to his class and calmness. Knows when to thread passes and see holes in defence others don’t see. A performance filled with class especially the manner in which he struck the volley that gave Nigeria the lead….8.5/10

Kelechi Iheanacho: Started on a slow note but ended the half on a high with a calm finish. Looked menacing all through and if he maintains his current goal rate for Nigeria, he could smash the all time record in record time….8/10

Brown Ideye: Wasted a clear chance when put through by Iwobi although the flag of the assistant referee saved his blushes. Set Iheanacho up for the second goal and gave the defenders of Zambia a lot to worry about. He used his body to good effect and was excellent in his hold up play with his back to goal….7.5/10

Substitute:

Anderson Esiti: Brought instant calm to the midfield of Nigeria. The half fit defensive midfielder won three tackles that could have caused panic in the Nigerian half….5.5/10

Ahmed Musa: Hard a low effort which forced the Zambian keeper into a punched save. Looked lively and tracked back to help the defence. Won freekicks that slowed down the Zambians. Not too bad a performance from the Leicester City big money buy….6/10

Shehu Abdullahi: A time wasting substitute worth a mention but didn’t get involved enough to earn a rating.

Two first half goals ensured the Super Eagles of Nigeria survived a second half spell of pressure from Zambia to win 2-1 and start their World Cup 2018 qualifiers on a strong note.

Arsenal highly rated 20 year old Alex Iwobi gave Nigeria the lead with a smart finish from inside the Zambians box from a loose clearance. Displaying smart technique in putting power, precision and pace in his effort to powerfully beat Kennedy Mweene in goal for Zambia.

Minutes before the half time break. Kelechi iheanacho doubled the lead for Nigeria rounding the goalkepper after a smart interchange of passes between Mikel Obi and Brown Ideye.

Ideye laid the ball perfectly for the recently turned 20 year old Manchester City forward, who kept his calm to round the goalkepper before slotting home despite three Zambian defenders on the line.

Collins Mbesuma profited from a poor piece of defending from Kenneth Omeruo to pull a goal back for the home side in the second half but despite a sustained spell of pressure. Nigeria hanged on to claim an all important three points away in Ndola.

Their next game will be against Algeria, who are in action in the evening group game against Cameroun.

As exclusively reported by Owngoalnigeria.com yesterday, players of the Super Eagles of Nigeria struggled under the harsh weather in the city of Ndola, where their game with Zambia will take place later today.

Anderson Esiti largely regarded as the strongest Super Eagles players has been ruled out of the clash against Zambia after falling to the harsh weather condition in the City.

Esiti complained of feeling headache after yesterday’s training session at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium. He was given medication but in the early hours of this morning, he called in sick, shivering with a very high body temperature.

The Gent midfielder was subsequently ruled out of today’s game due to the illness and, his absence will be a big blow to the Super Eagles as he has been one of their best players in training.

He scored the opener in the test game against Plateau United on Thursday. A goal he scored by robbing the opponent of the ball using his strength before finishing with a low shot.

The Levy Mwanawasa Stadium will today play host to the Super Eagles of Nigeria who are up against the Chipolopolo of Zambia in their first World Cup 2018 qualifiers.

Owngoalnigeria.com bring to you, the various time zones for the game and where to watch the game both on TV and Online.

Day: Sunday October 9th

Time: 05:30 PST. 08:30 EST. 12:30 UTC. 14:30 CET. 13:30m BST.

Stadium Capacity: 49, 800.

Channel: beIN Sports Connect U.S.A. FuboTV

SuperSport Select GO, SuperSport Select, SuperSport 3 Africa. SuperSport 3 Nigeria, SuperSport Select GO.

Alex Iwobi of Arsenal and captain John Mikel Obi of Chelsea were the star attraction in the Super Eagles team for Zambian fans upon arrival in Ndola.

A large section of football enthusiast who were present when the duo appeared with the Super Eagles upon arrival kept shouting their names, while the players responded with a wave.

However security operatives failed to prevent some of the screaming fans from taking photos with the Nigerian super stars, as a matter of fact even some of the security men were also guilty of abandoning their duty for photographs with the Eagles stars.

Manchester City teen star Kelechi Iheanacho wasn’t left out of the picture session, as the man whose goal clinched the Manchester derby for his side against Manchester United was heavily courted as well.

However, the training session of the team was closed to media men and the general public as the Super Eagles rehearse their tactics for tomorrow’s game.

Players of the Super Eagles of Nigeria had a feel of the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium ahead of Sunday World Cup 2018 qualifiers against the Chipolopolo of Zambia.

The session which was done behind close doors had the players on a sprint of light jog to shake off the stress of jet lag after arriving the country today, just over 24 hours to tomorrow’s clash.

As the training progressed with technical drills, players of the squad were concerned about two things ahead of tomorrow’s game according to one of the players who spoke with Owngoalnigeria.com.

” The playing surface is about the worst I have seen. Although it is made of natural grass but the pitch has contours almost everywhere. Very bumpy and hard. We managed to pull through without any injury” He told Owngoalnigeria.com.

” Secondly the weather wasn’t friendly at all players like Alex Iwobi, Mikel Obi and Kelechi Iheanacho kept on drinking water. Worst still we are playing by 2:30pm Zambian time, which is 1:30pm Nigerian time.

” Bar this two things, we have no problem. Please all we need from Nigerians is support and prayers, by the grace of God, we will make Nigerians proud”.