William Troost-Ekong said his late goal that earned Nigeria a 2-1 victory over South Africa and a spot in the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals was a "dream moment".
The centre-back knocked home a corner in the 89th minute in Cairo as Nigeria advanced to the last four of the competition for the 15th time in 18 appearances.
"I dream about moments like this. To score and for it to be important for the team is amazing," said Troost-Ekong.
"It's not my job to score, I'm a defender so I was happy we didn't give away too many chances. After they scored from a set-piece I thought that I wanted revenge.
"We were confident we could score again. We didn't want to go to extra time because we were going to be tired but I think it was the same for South Africa."
Nigeria, who won the last of their three titles in 2013, will face Algeria or Ivory Coast on Sunday for a place in the July 19 final.
"I think every game is tough now. We've seen big teams lose and go out of the tournament so it's going to be difficult whoever we face," said Troost-Ekong. "We came here to try and win the trophy."
Idrissa Gueye goal sends Senegal through
Senegal reached the Afcon semi-finals for the first time since 2006 when Idrissa Gueye scored to deliver a 1-0 win over Benin in Cairo on Wednesday.
Everton midfielder Gueye struck on 70 minutes, side-footing the ball into the net from close range after being set up by Liverpool forward Sadio Mane.
This was the first Cup of Nations match to use the VAR (video assistant referee) system and there were no controversial incidents.
Benin were reduced to 10 men in the closing stages when Olivier Verdon was given a straight red card for a last-defender foul.
On Sunday, 2002 runners-up Senegal will face giantkillers Madagascar or under-performing Tunisia in a semi-final in the Egyptian capital.
"We were expecting a complicated match and my players did not give up because they have a good mentality, were patient and respected instructions," said Senegal manager Aliou Cisse.
"At this stage of the tournament, anyone can beat anyone. We came here with the ambition of playing seven matches, and we will play them. We want to play in the final."
Benin counterpart Michel Dussuyer said: "I want to congratulate my players for the way they handle difficult challenges.
"The boys must be proud. They made the people of Benin proud. With this squad, we have advanced. Of course, there is disappointment, but the players can hold their heads high."
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
RACE CARD
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,400m
5.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 1,000m
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 2,000m
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 2,000m
7pm: Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
7.30pm: Al Ain Mile Group 3 (PA) Dh350,000 1,600m
8pm: Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
Amith's selections:
5pm: AF Sail
5.30pm: Dahawi
6pm: Taajer
6.30pm: Pharitz Oubai
7pm: Winked
7.30pm: Shahm
8pm: Raniah
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
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First Person
Richard Flanagan
Chatto & Windus
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The chef's advice
Troy Payne, head chef at Abu Dhabi’s newest healthy eatery Sanderson’s in Al Seef Resort & Spa, says singles need to change their mindset about how they approach the supermarket.
“They feel like they can’t buy one cucumber,” he says. “But I can walk into a shop – I feed two people at home – and I’ll walk into a shop and I buy one cucumber, I’ll buy one onion.”
Mr Payne asks for the sticker to be placed directly on each item, rather than face the temptation of filling one of the two-kilogram capacity plastic bags on offer.
The chef also advises singletons not get too hung up on “organic”, particularly high-priced varieties that have been flown in from far-flung locales. Local produce is often grown sustainably, and far cheaper, he says.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
