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After defeating Gabon 4-1 in the semi final of the FIFA World Cup African playoffs, Nigeria’s Super Eagles failed to further their World Cup ambition after being thrashed by the Leopards of DR Congo in a penalty shootout in Rabat, Morocco. Sadly, one of Africa’s most fancied teams crashed out from the global football showpiece. It was the second time in a row that Nigeria had failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup. We are saddened by the inability of the Super Eagles to hoist Nigeria’s flag at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, holding in the United States (US), Canada and Mexico.
The Super Eagles failed in all departments in the playoff match with the DR Congo. It was not a surprise that they were thoroughly defeated by a stronger team. Nigeria should learn so much from the Congo defeat. The Super Eagles’ approach to the game was lackadaisical and uninspiring. Our team has become so predictable and incoherent that their matches are no longer interesting to watch. We must go back to the drawing board and begin afresh to re-strategize for the future.
The Super Eagles did not do well in the World Cup qualifying campaign. The team finished runner-up to the Bafana Bafana of South Africa on 17 points, one less than that of South Africa’s team. It was more embarrassing because Nigeria was the highest ranked FIFA team in the group that comprised African football minnows like Benin, Rwanda, Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Unexpectedly, Nigeria was unable to produce convincing results against these teams, drawing with Rwanda, Zimbabwe and Lesotho. This seriously limited the team’s chances of qualifying for the Mundial. It is sad that the Super Eagles struggled throughout the campaign to make an appreciable impact despite having the best players in Africa, including Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman.
Former Super Eagles coaches, Jose Peseiro and Finidi George, who started the qualifying campaign with the Super Eagles, did not do well, having secured only three points from the maximum 12 points from the first four matches. Nigeria’s late surge for a direct qualification ticket was under the third coach, Eric Chelle, who won five matches out of the seven and drew two. The intermittent change of coaches affected the Super Eagles campaign and Nigeria paid dearly for that tactical blunder.
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Super Eagles failure to qualify for the 2026 World can be partly blamed on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), whose poor management of players’ welfare, coach recruitment and administration of the team led to our botched World Cup dream. The unserious prosecution of the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign led to our colossal failure. There is urgent need to overhaul the NFF and the team. This is the time to fully develop the national league and grassroots football. The Super Eagles need new legs. The tired legs in the team should be retired immediately.
We must emulate South Africa. Most of the players in the South African team play in their local league. Nigeria has depended so much on foreign players. We must begin to look homewards for a new Super Eagles. We want a team that can easily blend. We want a cohesive team. Nigeria needs a team where the players are hungry for goals. A robust local league can produce exceptional talents for the Super Eagles. We must not forget that Cape Verde, a very small country, booked a place at the World Cup as one of Africa’s nine representatives. Even DR Congo that eliminated Nigeria in the final of the African playoffs has some of their star players playing in Africa.
Having missed the 2026 FIFA World Cup, this is the time to start planning for another World Cup qualification campaign. We must begin early if we want to succeed. Nigeria should not miss another World Cup again. Nigerians love football. There is no doubt that football is a unifying factor in the country. Nigerians are united and happy whenever the Super Eagles play. Having lost the World Cup ticket, we enjoin the Super Eagles to prosecute the forthcoming AFCON tournament in Morocco from December 2025 to January 2026 with much seriousness. They must be decisive in the field of play. We need to see more commitment from the players and the coaching crew. Winning the tournament will console us for the botched 2026 FIFA World Cup dream.
