“Nigeria Is in Big Trouble”: Fans Lament As South Africa Extends Lead in World Cup Race
- South Africa defeated Lesotho 3-0 to move nine points ahead of Nigeria as the race for the FIFA World Cup heats up
- Nigeria faces Rwanda on Saturday at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo in a must-win game to stay alive in the qualifiers
- Fans have blasted the Super Eagles online, warning that another World Cup miss could damage Nigerian football
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South Africa tightened their grip on Group C in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers after a commanding 3-0 win over Lesotho on Friday.
Goals from Mohau Nkota, Lyle Foster, and Oswin Appollis gave Hugo Broos’ Bafana Bafana a comfortable victory and widened the gap over Nigeria in the group.
Source: Twitter
The result means South Africa now sits five points clear at the top of the group, and nine points ahead of the Super Eagles, BBC reports.
Nigeria still has a game in hand, but they face a must-win clash against Rwanda on Saturday in Uyo to keep any realistic hope alive.
South Africa pulls away in Group C
The victory over Lesotho pushed South Africa further ahead in the race.
With their tally, they now enjoy a nine-point cushion over Nigeria, who has struggled through the qualifiers with just seven points from six matches, per FIFA.com.
Source: Getty Images
The pressure is firmly on the Super Eagles, and anything short of a win against Rwanda would all but kill Nigeria’s World Cup dreams.
Even then, the three-time African champions must win all remaining matches, including a decisive encounter against South Africa next Tuesday.
A draw or loss in that game would automatically rule out any hopes of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Nigerian fans react after South Africa’s win
The Group C standings triggered a wave of fear among Nigerian supporters as many took to social media to express frustration and disappointment at missing yet another World Cup.
One fan, Pooja, tweeted:
“Nigeria is in trouble.”
Another supporter echoed the same hopelessness:
“We are not going anywhere. If we can't qualify without mathematics and relying on opponents to lose from this group, we have no business at the tournament.”
9x United added:
“We messed up already, missing two consecutive World Cups will be very bad to our football steezz.”
Some went further, questioning the team’s mentality. Osinachi noted:
“South Africa can still beat us in the return leg, that’s how unserious this national team is 😅”
And El Principe summed up the frustration with a familiar lament:
“Our Super Eagles always pray for other countries' downfall before they can qualify for a competition. Only God can explain Nigeria to us ooo”
What Nigeria must do
The message is clear: Nigeria’s margin for error has disappeared, and for the Super Eagles to stand any chance, Saturday’s game against Rwanda is non-negotiable.
Beyond that, the showdown against South Africa next Tuesday is crucial and must be treated like a final.
Defeat or even a draw would leave Nigeria’s hopes crushed, and missing back-to-back World Cups would hurt national pride.
Nigeria protest match venue vs South Africa
In a related development, Legit.ng reported that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) are putting in place machinery to ensure the Super Eagles qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The NFF have lodged a protest to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for a change in venue against South Africa, citing concerns over the bad state of the pitch.
Source: Legit.ng
