Willing to finish first — it's nearly over now (7)
I believe the answer is:
endgame
'nearly over now' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.
'willing to finish first' is the wordplay.
'willing' becomes 'game' (I've seen this before).
'to finish' becomes 'end' ('end' can be a synonym of 'finish').
'first' says to put letters next to each other.
'game' after 'end' is 'ENDGAME'.
'it's' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for endgame that I've seen before include "Beckett play" , "drama" , "final moves" , "when there are few men left" , "Denouement (chess)" .)