The Nigeria Pillar of Sports, Chief Donatus Agu-Ejidike JP has called on critical stakeholders in the Nigerian footballing milieu to rally round the the country’s senior nation men’s football team, the Super Eagles, amidst their current poor run of results, in the ongoing 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Ejidike made the call on Tuesday, during an interaction with Sports journalists at his office in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, when he said “these are not the best of times for the Super Eagles, but this is the time they need the most, the supports of every Nigerian, to be able to navigate this difficult period in our national footballing journey.”
The former President of the Karate Federation of Nigeria (KFN) therefore, calls on every Nigerian for supports, especially for the players, and the technical crew, adding that, “it is a no brainer that the guys, as well as the manager would want to be at the Canada-Mexico-USA 2026 World Cup, being the pinnacle of any Footballer’s aspiration.” He added that, “It would be grossly inaccurate for anybody to think that the guys do not know what is at stake; they do,” the Anambra-born sports philanthropist added.
The Nnewi-born business mogul maintained that, as a Nigerian, he understands the feeling of Nigerian football fans, but stated that, in football, you win, draw, or lose some. All we can do now is, move on and look forward to better days and results ahead. Agu-Ejidike also charges the boys to see their selection to represent the country from among the over-200 million Nigerians, as a privilege, and therefore double up their efforts and give no room for complacency in the remaining fixtures, so as to restore the country’s glory.
It would be recalled that, Nigeria had played a total of 4 matches, drew 3, and lost 1, the most recent of which was a 1-1 draw with South Africa in Uyo, and the 1-2 loss to Benin Republic. The others being 1-1 draw against Lesotho at home, and another one against Zimbabwe away. With those results, Nigeria now sit 5th with 3 points, on the six-team table, ahead of only Zimbabwe.
But the patron of the Nigerian Football Supporters Club (NFSC) believes that, Nigeria is technically, and mathematically not out of the race yet. All the boys need to do is, try and win the rest of the 6 matches.
In the same vein, the Nigeria’s Pillar of Sports has saluted the Nigerian women’s Under-17 national football team – “The Flamengoes,” for the emphatic 4-1 victory recorded against their Liberian counterparts over the weekend, in the first leg of last qualifying round for the world Cup, Dominican Republic 2024, slated for later in the year. The result has, more or less, rendered the return leg in Abuja this Friday, a mere formality.
Agu-Ejidike praises the girls and the team’s technical crew, while urging them to go all out, seal the qualification, and the go ahead and break their predecessors’ record in the competition. In the last edition held in India, Nigeria won the bronze medal.