Nigeria defeated Iceland 2-0 in Volgograd in the second match of Group D of the World Cup and revived the hope of the Argentine national team in search of qualification for the round of 16.

Striker Ahmed Musa was the scorer and the standout of the match that gave the African team its first points in the tournament after the 2-0 loss to Croatia in the debut.

The Nigerian victory, celebrated emphatically by Argentine fans as it provided a new chance for advancement to the next stage, found its strength in the second half when it quickly struck Iceland with Musa's first goal.

The CSKA Moscow striker, the first Nigerian to score in two World Cups (he did it in Brazil 2014 against Argentina), showed great skill when he brought down the ball after Victor Moses' pass, and with a bounce, attempted a right-footed shot that broke Iceland's stubborn resistance. At the same time, he ended a scoring drought of 272 minutes for his national team. Up until then, Nigeria's last goal had been in Brazil 2014, thanks to the aforementioned Musa, in a 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the group stage.

The speed of the African forward was too much for Iceland to handle in the second goal as well.

A new counterattack signaled the beginning of the end for the Icelanders.

Musa dribbled down the left side, eluded goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson, and finished despite the futile attempts of two defenders who were privileged witnesses on the goal line.

Iceland showcased its best performance in the first half with a more offensive lineup compared to the debut against Argentina, including a forward, Jon Bodvarsson, instead of a midfielder, Emil Hallfredsson. However, they never found precision. And with the first African blow, their entire structure collapsed.

Nigeria came out more determined in the second half and left Iceland without a response. Precision and speed were their defining characteristics to become the winners.

The Nordic team couldn't even take advantage of a penalty in their favor supported by VAR. The foul by Ebuehi on Finnbogason was not observed by New Zealand referee Matt Conger, who corrected his decision through the video assistant.

Gylfi Sigurdsson's shot, with nine minutes remaining, went wide, well above the crossbar, sealing Iceland's fate in the match.

With this result, the Nigerian team fueled their World Cup dream and placed themselves second in Group D with three points, behind Croatia (6).

With much to be decided, in the next and final match of the group stage, Nigeria will face Argentina (1) and Iceland (1) will do the same against the only qualifiers from Group D, the Croatians.