Nigeria’s Super Eagles were commanding as they romped to a 4-0 win over African champions Cameroon in a 2018 Fifa World Cup qualifying game in Uyo on Friday.
Odion Ighalo, Mikel John Obi, Victor Moses and Kelechi Iheanacho scored for the Super Eagles.
After last month’s defeat at their Godswill Akpabio Stadium home to South Africa in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, Nigeria head coach named a different side with FC Ifeanyiubah stopper Ikechukwu Ezenwa starting in goal in the absence of injured Daniel Akpeyi.
Mikel, Victor Moses and Ighalo all returned to the startlist for Nigeria after missing the Afcon qualifying defeat.
Cameroon manager Hugo Broos listed a strong side which included Fabrice Ondoa, Benjamin Moukandjo, Christian Bassogog and Vincent Aboubakar.
The African champions were dominant in the opening minutes up till the 18th before their hosts found a way into the contest.
Nigeria thought they had taken the lead on 24 minutes when Moses’s free kick hit with a good measure of curl behind it, fooled Ondoa and nestled in the net, but Egyptian referee Gehad Grisha with the help of his assistant ruled it offside with Ighalo closest to the set-piece.
Six minutes later, Ighalo opened scoring for Nigeria. The striker ran onto Mikel’s pass over the Cameroon defence, held off Michael Ngadeu before firing left-footed beyond a sprawling Ondoa.
Just before the break, Mikel was quickest to get on the end of Moses’s corner kick to neatly finish for the second goal after Ighalo’s dummy left the Cameroon defence in sixes and sevens.
Cameroon returned for the second half and looked galvanised from the restart, only to be pegged back by a third Nigerian goal that effectively killed the contest. Moses got the third following a superb counter-attacking play by the Super Eagles.
Stunned, confused and bereft of ideas on how to plot their way back, the Indomitable Lions just could not get into the groove and 14 minutes to time, Leicester City man Iheanacho got among the goals by cushioning the ball into an unguarded net after good work by Moses and Onazi on the right channel.
At 4-0, the contest looked all done and dusted as the Nigerian stroked the ball around and stretched their lead at the top of Group B in the African qualification for Russia 2018 to seven points.
Cameroon remain second with two points until Zambia and Algeria meet in Lusaka on Saturday.
Both Cameroon and Nigeria will go toe to toe for the second time in the group in Yaounde on Monday.