Afrigather 
The Deportivo Alaves shot-stopper loved an impressive day as he stopped numerous Nigetian assaults on a disappointing day for the Tremendous Eagles
Equatorial Guinea goalkeeper Jesús Owono has been awarded the Save of the Day honour for his spectacular cease in opposition to Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen, Soccernet.ng stories.
Owono claimed the man-of-the-match award as his wonderful shows helped Equatorial Guinea safe a formidable 1-1 draw on match-day one of many 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
The 22-year-old goalie made seven gorgeous saves as Nigeria searched desperately for a profitable purpose after Victor Osimhen cancelled out Iban Salvador’s Thirty sixth-minute opener.
Owono’s most excellent save got here within the second half when he charged down Osimhen, made himself huge, and blocked the Tremendous Eagles striker’s shot together with his chest.
— CAF (@CAF_Online) January 15, 2024
The Confederation of African Soccer, CAF, has recognized the Owono save as the very best from the three matches performed yesterday.
Egypt’s goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy made three stops because the Pharaohs scored a late penalty to say a 2-2 draw with Mozambique.
Goalkeeper Richard Ofori made 5 saves for Ghana nevertheless it was not sufficient to assist the Black Stars keep away from a shock 2-1 defeat to Cape Verde.
None of their saves, nonetheless, outshone that of Owono in opposition to Nigeria.
Answering Soccernet.ng‘s query on how he was in a position to stop Osimhen from scoring multiple, Owono mentioned, “[To stop Osimhen] it’s a must to be calm, and take the match like one other match.
“Victor Osimhen is a superb striker however we show that we’re a fantastic workforce and we defend nice.”
Curiously, Tremendous Eagles goalie Stanley Nwabali, making his aggressive debut for Nigeria, made just one save within the encounter.
Nigeria have one level on the board following the draw in opposition to Equatorial Guinea and could have a stiffer problem after they commerce tackles with host Cote d’Ivoire on matchday two.
Cote d’Ivoire defeated Guinea-Bissau on the opening day of the AFCON to bag three factors and sit prime of Group A.
