South African forward Zakhele Lepasa believes Nigeria have been the most impressive team so far at the 2025 African Cup of Nations tournament and possess the attacking threat to overcome any opponent, SportPremi reports.
The striker, who was absent from Bafana Bafana’s squad for the tournament acknowledges the presence of Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman in the Super Eagles roster, which puts them well ahead of other rivals.
Nigeria will face host nation Morocco in the semifinal of the tournament on Wednesday night, hoping to continue their 100% record so far.
The Super Eagles defeated Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda in their group stage matches and recorded an emphatic 4-0 win over Mozambique in their Round of 16 clash.
They overpowered Algeria in their last eight clash, recording a comprehensive 2-0 victory to advance to the last four of the tournament.
Zakhele Lepasa: South African star makes bold Super Eagles assumption
Siwelele FC’s Lepasa revealed his opinion on the Super Eagles’ brilliant form at the ongoing African Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco.
“Nigeria are under pressure because they didn’t qualify for the World Cup, which most of us were happy about because they are our arch-enemies. They want to prove a point that they are still the best even if they didn’t qualify”, the South African forward revealed.
“At the moment, they are actually the best team in the Afcon. They’ve scored fourteen goals and have players like Osimhen and Lookman taking centre stage.”
The Siwelele FC striker also revealed his stance on Morocco’s chances of winning the 2025 African Cup of Nations.
The 28-year-old says the Atlas Lions have been over-reliant on Golden boot leader Brahim Diaz and are yet to face a side as physically-imposing as the Super Eagles at the tournament.
“Yes, they can win it, but my question is: have they actually been challenged? If you look at their recent games, only the match against Cameroon was really 50–50.
“They are at home and have been doing well, but they’ve also had a few VAR decisions go their way”, he added.
“If you rely on one player compared to Nigeria, that’s the difference. Nigeria have Osimhen on four goals, Lookman on three, and other players chipping in as well. I don’t see them getting past Nigeria that easily.”
Nigeria will face Morocco later tomorrow in the second semifinal clash at the ongoing African Cup of Nations tournament in Morocco, few hours after the conclusion of the first semifinal between Egypt and Senegal in a repeat of the 2021 AFCON final.
The players will be geared up at making history, as they seek victory to continue their quest to win the Super Eagles’ first AFCON gold medal in 13 years.
