Why Gabon Was Denied a Penalty Against Nigeria in World Cup Playoff
- The Panthers of Gabon were denied a penalty during the second half of the World Cup play-off against Nigeria
- Birmingham defender Bright Osayi-Samuel pulled the shirt of a Gabonese player during a free kick in the box
- South African referee Abongile Tom checked the pitch-side monitor but decided against giving the penalty
- UK-based Nigerian football expert Rilwan Balogun agrees with the VAR’s decision to wave off the penalty appeal
The Panthers of Gabon were denied a penalty in the second half of their 2026 FIFA World Cup play-off against Nigeria despite VAR intervention.
Nigeria mauled Gabon 4-1 after 120 minutes to progress to the final of the African play-offs tourney and awaits the match between Cameroon and DR Congo.
Source: Twitter
Akor Adams opened the scoring for Nigeria in the 83rd minute after pouncing on a mistake in the Gabonese defence, but Mario Lemina equalised to take the game to extra time.
The Super Eagles came alive during extra time with Chidera Ejuke putting Nigeria ahead in the 97th minute after a brilliant pass from Wilfred Ndidi.
As noted by Goal, Osimhen put the result beyond doubt with one goal in each half of the extra time after missing two glorious chances to win it for Nigeria in the 92nd and 102nd minutes.
The Galatasaray striker would feel relieved as a wave of Nigerians were already piling on him on social media after the misses that could have cost the team.
Why Gabon’s penalty appeal was waved off
As noted by The Athletic, Gabon was denied a penalty that could have changed the game early in the second half, and they will refer to it for months to come.
Birmingham defender Bright Osayi-Samuel pulled the shirt of Gabonese player Aaron Appindagoye in the box during a free kick, and the Panthers protested.
South African referee Abongile Tom consulted the video assistant referee and checked the pitch-side monitor, but decided against giving a penalty.
The shirt pull in the box was clear, but the referee adjudged that the pull was easy and did not influence Appindagoye’s movement, hence waving off the penalty appeal.
If the penalty had been given and scored, Gabon would have led 1-0 at that point, and the game could have turned out differently from that 4-1 mauling.
Nigerians admitted that they were lucky to have been spared Osayi-Samuel’s blushes, but a few others believed that the contact was too soft.
Source: Twitter
Nigerian football expert Rilwan Balogun agrees with the referee and VAR’s decision not to award a penalty, claiming Nigeria would have been robbed if such a penalty had been given against them.
“It’s soft. The pull wasn’t long enough to have warranted a fall. In a contentious case like that, the referee has to consider the time of the pull and other events happening outside the moment,” he told Legit.ng.
Nigerians react after 4-1 win over Gabon
Legit.ng reported that Nigerians reacted after the Super Eagles thrashed Gabon 4-1 to keep their 2026 FIFA World Cup dreams alive.
Nigerian football fans were delighted with a brilliant all-round performance from their team to progress to the final of the African playoffs tourney.
Proofreading by Omoleye Omoruyi, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
