President Tinubu Urged to Intervene in Nigerian Football After Super Eagles World Cup Woes
- A prominent football stakeholder has called on President Bola Tinubu to beam his searchlight on the Nigeria Football Federation
- The Super Eagles will miss back-to-back World Cups after losing to DR Congo on penalties in Africa's playoff final
- Nigeria missed their first World Cup under former NFF president Amaju Pinnick and the second under Ibrahim Gusau
Nigeria suffered a 4-3 defeat at the hands of DR Congo during the 2026 FIFA World Cup playoff final in Rabat, Morocco on November 16.
The Super Eagles played a 1-1 draw against the Leopards in the regulation time, and proceeded to extra time before the penalty shootout at the Complexe Sportif Prince Moulay El Hassan.
The defeat means Nigeria will miss their second consecutive Mundial after also failing to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, per Al Jazeera.
Source: Getty Images
Nigeria progressed to the playoffs after finishing in second position with 17 points behind the Bafana Bafana of South Africa.
The Super Eagles struggled during the first four games under Jose Peseiro and Finidi George before the Nigeria Football Federation engaged Eric Chelle with the mandate of qualifying for the World Cup or risk being fired.
Former NFA scribe calls for President Tinubu's intervention
The former Secretary General of the defunct Nigeria Football Association (now NFF), Sani Toro has called on President Tinubu to intervene in the sad state of football in the country.
According to Vanguard, the Bauchi-born football administrator blasted the players for exhibiting a high level of indiscipline during the World Cup playoff, which is part of the reasons Nigeria failed.
Toro said the Nigeria Football Federation's technical committee is run by incompetent individuals who have zero knowledge about football administration.
Source: Getty Images
He described the match against the Leopards of DR Congo as shambolic. He said:
“It was very shambolic. I don’t think the NFF really planned or strategised very well to earn a World Cup ticket.
"In my view, I saw the playoffs between the four nations as extra punishments. The mini-tournament was a big torture for the players. The players had a lifeline; I call it a second chance but we threw it away.
"I want to ask, what is really going on with our football? I think it’s time Mr President himself beamed his searchlight and found out what is really going on there."
Toro recalled the rift between Finidi George and Victor Osimhen, which the NFF failed to tackle till date. He said:
"We all can remember what transpired between former Super Eagles coach and the NFF; till this moment, the football authorities have not done anything to bring discipline to play."
Why Osimhen was substituted vs DR Congo
Legit.ng earlier reported that Nigerian fans were stunned following Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen's unexpected withdrawal from the African final of the World Cup playoff against DR Congo.
The Galatasaray striker did not return from the tunnel at the start of the second half as he was replaced by Akor Adams.
Source: Legit.ng
