Eric Chelle's Nigeria kept up their strong Unity Cup record, beating Jamaica 3-0 in the Final of the Afro-Caribbean Football Tournament at The Valley in London on Saturday.
New England Revolution midfielder Alhassan Yusuf Abdullahi helped himself to a brace, with stand-in captain Terem Moffi's goal sandwiched in-between, to ensure that the Super Eagles maintained their tradition of winning the tournament in all of its four iterations.
Chelle made just one change to the team that bested Zimbabwe's Warriors in the semifinals, handing Rafiu Durosinmi a start ahead of Philip Otele, and the Nigerians looked just as cohesive as they did four days earlier.
Abdullahi, who posted a commanding display in midfield against Zimbabwe, was first on the board, putting Chelle's B side in front within the opening five minutes.
The MLS-based midfielder reacted quickest to guide an instinctive half volley home as goalkeeper Coniah Boyce-Clarke fisted the ball into the mixer following Kenneth Igboke's long throw-in.
That early lead appeared to be the tonic the Super Eagles' needed to seize control of the game, and dominate their Caribbean opponents for large swathes of the game.
Two-goal hero in the semifinal, Femi Azeez, did not get on the score sheet, but he was no less troublesome, and it was his dainty feet that slipped past his marker and centre the perfect ball for Moffi that got Nigeria the second goal.
By the time Yusuf got his third, the Reggae Boyz had been well and truly disheartened, and the Super Eagles cantered their way to victory.
Jamaica and Nigeria are the only two teams to have taken part in all four editions of The Unity Cup, which was first played in 2002 between both countries, before expanding to three with the addition of the Republic of Ireland in 2004.
On revival 11 years later, it stretched to four teams, with Ghana and Trinidad and Tobago making their first appearances before Zimbabwe and India joined the party in 2026.
Up next for the Eagles is a friendly against Poland at the PGE Narodowy Stadium in Warsaw, on June 3 before they take on FIFA World Cup-bound Portugal.
Should the NFF break the bank to keep Chelle?
Results: Two games, two wins, five goals scored, none allowed, playing with a team that had four debutants, and another four not far removed from being debutants.
Chelle began this tournament with a team that essentially had the majority of starting players with single digits international appearances. Stand-in captain Moffi, with 19 appearances, had fifty percent of the 40 total caps of the starting team against Zimbabwe and the same against Jamaica.
If they looked good but somewhat shaky in spurts against Zimbabwe, this team were absolutely purring against the Reggae Boyz. In every measurable game metric, the came out on top, and when the needed to be, they were spirited.
This team were fluid, they pressed high and with intensity, they ran like the coach asked and they dominated two teams they played against. Chelle's tactical imprint was not in doubt, neither was his firm hold on the squad.
These two wins mean that Chelle is still yet to lose in 24 games as Nigeria coach, since taking over in January of 2025. That record comes with 16 wins, and eight draws. The only loss is a pre-AFCON scrimmage against Egypt.
Beyond the results, Chelle's team is gradually taking shape, and not a little strength in depth, with more being added to the pool.
Despite all of these, the coach's contract situation still remains unresolved, with the NFF seemingly unwilling to shell out to keep the Malian.
On the evidence of his body of work so far, including this tournament, it may be in the NFF's and Nigeria's interest for them to go ahead and break that bank to keep the coach.
Okonkwo, Azeez in line for A-Team
Wrexham goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo has kept two clean sheets in his debut for Nigeria, but has still not faced his baptism of fire. At least, not by much.
The England-born stopper has been more than adequate when called upon, but the quality of those tests are not quite of the level to make a judgement of his readiness to snatch the Super Eagles shirt from the current, albeit fluid, occupants.
Okonkwo should have an opportunity, even if on limited minutes, to answer those questions in less than a week when the main squad takes on Poland and then Portugal.
For Millwall striker Azeez, he was the standout of this mini-tournament, but even his two-goal opening match performance was still not enough to get Chelle to commit.
However, there was slightly more evidence of his talents added in the second game. While he did not score, his smart runs, quick passing, spatial awareness and movements showed he can make the step up to the main team.
Like Okonkwo, some of Chelle's questions of Azeez will be answered against more accomplished opposition.
Elsewhere, Chibuike Nwaiwu and Igoh Ogbu added to their legend at centerback, providing quality depth in a much-needed area after the departure of William Troost-Ekong and with Semi Ajayi advancing in years.
Rangers duo make case for domestic players
Those two clean sheets by the Super Eagles were as solid as they were impressive, and the contributions of the Enugu Rangers duo of Chibueze Oputa and Obinna Igboke were central to that.
The duo brought energy to the press, lungs to the running as they bombed up and down the wide areas from their fullback positions, and helped add intensity to the high press demanded of the team by Chelle.
But in doing so, they did not fail to do their jobs of defending, and were more than efficient in keeping their wide opposition at bay.
Fresh off winning the NPFL title with Rangers, the duo showed that while they may have some way to go to reach the level of the likes of Bruno Onyemaechi, Ola Aina, Bright Osayi-Samuel and Zaidu Sanusi, that way is not so far off that they cannot step in if needed and do a job.
However, to do so, they must maintain the same level of performances, and not run off to trials abroad at the drop of a hat. Super Eagles recent history abounds with domestic league players on the cusp of international breakthroughs who wrecked their careers with premature foreign jaunts.