Former Nigerian international John Ogu has said the players must take responsibility for the country’s failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Super Eagles missed out on a second consecutive World Cup tournament after losing to the Democratic Republic of Congo in the CAF playoff final last November.
The three-time African champions had finished second in their group behind South Africa and defeated Gabon 4-1 in the playoff semifinal, before going down to DR Congo in the playoffs final.
Meanwhile the Leopards have now qualified for the tournament after defeating Jamaica in the intercontinental playoff and will compete in group K alongside Portugal, Colombia or Uzbekistan.
Before the back-to-back disappointment, Nigeria had previously qualified for six of the seven editions since their debut in 1994, only missing out on the 2006 edition.
John Ogu blames Super Eagles players for World Cup miss
John Ogu, who featured for Nigeria at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, believes the players are largely to blame for the situation, rather than the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), which has faced most of the criticism.
“Hold the players responsible, because when I was in the Super Eagles, I was there for years. The NFF provided the best welfare for us to deliver”, John Ogu said.
“Don’t put the blame on the NFF, put it on the players too. I’ll say they should share the blame equally.
“I’ll fault the Federation because of the faulty structure, but they do try, they provide the best hotels, make sure we get our bonuses. They do their best, even though it might not be enough. Blame the players. NFF do their best”, he concluded.
Nigeria will now turn their attention to the 2027 African Cup of Nations qualifying tournament, as they hope to avoid another major disappointment.
Meanwhile, they will face Poland and Portugal in two high-profile friendly games in June.
