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Brazil concluded the October leg of their Brazil Global Tour with a 1-1 draw against Nigeria at the Singapore National Stadium.
Rangers midfielder Joe Aribo showed great footwork to beat Marquinhos and slot past Ederson to put the Super Eagles ahead, while Casemiro equalized for the Samba Boys after a header from Marquinhos rebounded off the post.
Brazil dominated proceedings for most of the match, with Renan Rodl and Dani Alvez going forward with aplomb and delivering some exquisite crosses; but their efforts were largely refuted by a resolute Nigerian defence marshalled by William Troost-Ekong.
It was the first time the two sides were meeting since a 3-0 victory by Brazil at the opening of the Abuja national stadium in 2003 and at the end of 90 minutes, both sides had to share the spoils.
Here, we highlight three talking points from the draw between Brazil and Nigeria.
#3 Neymar limps off injured
The last two years have been ones to forget for Neymar, as the 27-year-old has been blighted by off-field and injury problems that have had devastating impacts on his career.
Injuries have cost him a total of over eight months in the last two years, concordantly ruling him out of key Champions League clashes for PSG, as well as the Copa America-winning squad for Brazil.
With his latest injury niggle coming few days to the commencement of the Copa America on home soil, Neymar then faced transfer speculation for the entirety of the summer, but seemingly put all those behind him with his explosive start to the current campaign.
Having played the full 90 minutes in the draw against Senegal last time out, Neymar was once more thrust on from the start for the clash with Nigeria, but just 10 minutes into the game, he hobbled off with what appeared to be a hamstring injury.
While no official word has been released as to the severity of the injury, PSG fans would be waiting with bated breath for it not to be as serious as first feared.
#2 Winless run continues for Brazil
After their disappointing quarterfinal elimination at the last World Cup, Brazil responded with a bang in 2019, drawing their first match against Panama, before embarking on a winning run that lasted nine matches and included six consecutive clean sheets, culminating in the Copa America triumph.
However, since then, things have not exactly gone to plan for the South Americans despite the return of Neymar.
Their first game after the Copa triumph ended in a 2-2 draw with Colombia in September, while they fell to a surprise 1-0 defeat to Peru in a friendly just days later (ironically, they had twice defeated Peru by an aggregate score of 8-1 at the Copa America).
The latest international break saw Brazil draw 1-1 with Senegal and everyone including coach Tite and defender Thiago Silva admitted that they had not been good enough. They would have sought to get back to winning ways against Nigeria, but for all their superiority, the Brazilians could not get the winning goal.
The draw means that Brazil have now gone four matches without a win and while they might all have been in exhibition fixtures, the prestige attached to Brazilian football means that it is simply not acceptable.
#1 The future looking bright for the Super Eagles
Nigeria are one of the traditional footballing nations on the African continent, but things have not exactly panned out well for the three-time African champions in recent years.
Having triumphed in the 2013 Nations Cup, the country failed to qualify for the next two editions, but returned with a bang at the 2019 tournament and finished in third-place, eliminating the defending Champions along the way.
Under Gernot Rohr's management, Nigeria have made steady gains and it has begun to reflect in performances on the field and the current crop of Super Eagles' players are among the best in recent memory.
Victor Osimhen has been banging in goals for fun with Lille in the French League, while Wilfred Ndidi is arguably the standout holding midfielder in the Premier League today.
Other youngsters like Samuel Chukwueze (Villareal), Dennis Emmanuel (Club Brugge), and Samuel Kalu (Bordeaux) are also impressing on the continent, but perhaps the biggest source of optimism is Joe Aribo.
Nigeria has cried out for a quality attacking midfielder since the legendary Jay-Jay Okocha exited the scene almost 15 years ago, but in the Rangers star, they might have found their man.
The 22-year-old has been one of the stars for Steven Gerrard this season in the Scottish Premiership and despite being eligible for England, he has chosen to represent the Super Eagles.
He scored a debut goal in his first international outing against Ukraine last month and has followed that up with another fine performance against one of the best teams on the international scene.
Despite coming up against renowned midfielders like Arthur, Casemiro, and Coutinho, Aribo was unfazed and held his own for the entirety of his time on the field and capped a fine display with a well-taken goal.
Nigeria might be a long way off from their glory days of USA '94 and Atlanta '96, but with the current crop of players, the future looks very bright for them indeed.
