In the thrilling encounter at the Stade De Kegue in Lome on Monday night, the five-time world champions, Golden Eaglets, scored twice but could not spring the much-needed surprise comeback to defend the title they won two years ago.
Sindou opened the scoring for the Ivorians in the 15th minute of play while Abduramane Konate doubled their lead in the 56th minute.
Seydou Traore compounded Fatai Amoo’s boys woes when he came off the bench to net Ivory Coast’s third goal of the night.
The Eaglets’ resilience and determination paid off when Abdullahi who came on for Vincent Osuji in the 65th minute, scored a brace for the Nigerian side.
Last-minute efforts by the Golden Eaglets were not enough as the match ended 3-2 in favour of the Ivorians.
