The Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, has called for realism from Nigerians over the Super Eagles’ chances of reaching the 2026 FIFA World Cup after a tough qualifying campaign, Footynaija.com reports.
Nigeria sit third in Group C behind South Africa and Benin, with just two matches left to play. The Super Eagles have 11 points from eight games, leaving them outside the automatic qualification spot and locked in a battle for a possible playoff place.
The three-time African champions had endured a slow start to the qualifiers, winning just once in their first four games before improving form under head coach Eric Chelle. That late push has kept faint hopes alive, but the situation remains far from straightforward.
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“As for the World Cup, we all know where we are; when we came on board, we only had three points out of 12. The Commission and the NFF put their heads together, and now we have eight points in the last four games. If we had got these points, we would have been talking of qualifying for the World Cup,” Dikko said in a report by Guardian.
“At this moment, we have to be factual about it; based on the number, it is basically out of our hands. We just have to win our games and see where that would take us. But we are still hopeful because it’s football, and someone will lose, and anything can happen. Factually, it is not in our hands, and we just have to keep doing what we have to do by supporting the team,” he added.
Nigeria’s remaining qualifiers are against Lesotho and Benin, fixtures that could still decide whether they sneak into the playoffs. But as Dikko admits, much will depend on other results in the group, with South Africa holding the advantage at the top.
