Nigeria vs Gabon: Fredrick ends Ekong’s reign as Osimhen redeems himself 

Benjamin Frederick gave an assured performance while Osimhen went from villain to hero as Nigeria thrashed Gabon in their World Cup playoffs. Benjamin Frederick and Victor Osimhen were the stars as Nigeria’s Super Eagles moved one step closer towards qualifying for the World Cup following a 4-1 win over Gabon. Akor Adams opened the scoring for Nigeria in the 78th minute before Mario Lemina’s late strike sent the tie to extra time. Nonetheless, the Super Eagles would not be denied as Chidera Ejuke restored their lead before Osimhen’s late brace secured a comprehensive win for Eric Chelle’s men. The scoreline does not tell the full story of the game, though, as there were some major talking points, which we have highlighted below. Benjamin Fredrick is here to stay It is hard to believe that Fredrick only made his first competitive start for the Super Eagles in the game against Rwanda two months ago. However, since he made his competitive debut, he has been a wonder to watch. Still only 20, Fredrick plays like he has years of experience, having never put a foot wrong so far. The on-loan Brentford defender had another assured performance at the back for the Super Eagles against Gabon. He showed once again why he was picked ahead of the current Super Eagles captain, William Troost-Ekong. Even though it was a high-stakes game, Fredrick never made rash decisions. There was a particular moment in the first half where the safe option would have been to clear the ball out from the back, but he took a calmer approach, ensuring the Super Eagles retained possession. He never gave Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang a sniff of a chance, which is really impressive, considering the Gabon striker came into this game in good form. Based on his performances so far, this might be the end for Ekong as a starter for the Super Eagles. Eric Chelle needs to adapt Even though Nigeria won, Chelle played with fire once again by sticking with a two-man midfield pairing of Alex Iwobi and Wilfred Ndidi. Although the decision allowed the Super Eagles to have more bodies going forward, it also exposed gaps in the midfield. On rare occasions the Panthers go forward, there is a clear space both in the middle and on the wings. Any other team would have taken advantage of this space, but the Panthers’ lack of quality meant the Super Eagles survived. While it is understandable why Chelle continues to stick with a two-man midfield, he needs to adapt because against quality opposition, the Super Eagles might not be that lucky. Also, the decision to keep Ndidi on despite the Besiktas man’s yellow card in the sixth minute was not a wise one. Although he did bring on Frank Onyeka for Akor Adams after Nigeria took the lead, the change should have been earlier. It allowed Gabon to have a foothold in the game after the break, having been on the back foot for most of the first half. While his trust in the former Leicester man paid off as he set up Chidera Ejuke for the second goal, he might not be lucky next time. Osimhen fluffs his lines but redeems himself The Super Eagles had no business playing extra time in the game, but their star man, Victor Osimhen, was out of sorts. Osimhen, who you could argue is the reason Nigeria even managed to secure a spot in the playoffs, could have put Nigeria out of sight before the second half. However, he was wasteful in front of goal, missing a couple of chances. The biggest miss was in the last minute of the second half with the score tied at 1-1. The Galatasaray star was through on goal after he was released by Ndidi, but could not even hit the target with only the keeper to beat. On any other day, that miss could have been costly, but it did not, as Ejuke put Nigeria ahead in extra time. While Ejuke saved the day, Osimhen still showed why he remains one of the best strikers in the world as he scored twice in extra time to make up for that miss. Ejuke offers competition For a very long time, Ademola Lookman has been one of the untouchables in the Super Eagles squad. While the Atalanta man remains a key figure in the squad, Ejuke’s performance after coming on gives Chelle more options in attack. Lookman had a below-par game against Gabon, which was also the case in the game against Lesotho last month. Although his lack of pre-season at Atalanta did not help him, he cannot afford to keep delivering these poor performances every game. He will most likely start on Sunday, but with Ejuke showing what he can offer, Lookman's spot in the lineup is no longer guaranteed.