Super Eagles goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali praised his teammates' collective effort after registering his first clean sheet of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Nigeria's 4-0 rout of Mozambique on Monday night.

At the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast, Nwabali established a new benchmark for Nigerian goalkeeping, recording the most minutes without conceding a goal (493 minutes across six matches) by a Super Eagles goalkeeper in the history of the tournament.

In doing so, he surpassed the previous mark set by legendary shot-stopper Ike Shorunmu, who represented Nigeria at two separate Afcon editions.

Speaking to reporters in the mixed zone after the match, Nwabal highlighted the team’s unity, growth, and discipline, particularly in keeping a clean sheet.

Reflecting on the win, Nwabal first acknowledged his own contribution before praising the squad as a whole.

He said, “First I want to say kudos to these guys from the coach, the players. I want to talk about me first. But I’m saying kudos to these guys. They are one family, trying to fight like this, winning with a clean sheet.” 

Nwabal also emphasized the progress the team has made over the course of the tournament.

“I feel like it’s a lot of improvement in the team. I feel like a lot of improvement, because this is where you talk about experience in the tournament,” he explained. 

He stressed that success in such a competition comes with patience and consistent effort:

“Tournament is not something you rush, once it’s something you go every day. Now we play first game, second game, third game we concede. Now we keep clean sheet for you.”

The goalkeeper also pointed out that maintaining defensive discipline provides a foundation for further progress.

“We see a lot of improvement in the team and see what the team is probably lacking or something, because I believe the more we keep clean sheet the more we go more far,” Nwabal said.

When asked about looking ahead to the quarter-final, Nwabal emphasized his focus on the present rather than future opponents.

“I don’t like talking about my next game. I only talk about my next game that day I’m playing against my opponent. I won’t talk about it. I’m only happy today we won and I feel like probably just to go and rest, and you can see I didn’t do much today,” he explained.

“It's nice to be on holiday. You know, I didn’t celebrate December, and now I'm celebrating my own December here. It’s nice.”

With the quarter-finals in Marrakesh looming, Nwabal and the Super Eagles are focused on building from their improvements while maintaining discipline, unity, and determination in pursuit of continental glory.

Wale Adejumo