William Troost-Ekong urged Nigerians to keep backing the Super Eagles ahead of next month’s 2026 FIFA World Cup playoffs in Morocco while reflecting on the team’s challenging qualification campaign, Footynaija.com reports.
The Super Eagles were on the verge of completely missing out on a World Cup ticket for the second consecutive time after failing to get maximum points from any of their first four qualifying matches.
However, a run of four wins and a draw from their last six games under the tutelage of Eric Chelle, including Tuesday’s 4-0 thrashing of West African neighbours Benin in Uyo, proved good enough to keep the dream of making it to next summer’s Mundial alive despite missing out on automatic qualification.
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Nigeria will now face Gabon in a one-legged semi-final on November 13 in Morocco, while Cameroon and DR Congo are set to battle in the other semi-final on the same day. The winners of both matches will square off on November 16, also in Morocco, with the champion moving on to the intercontinental play-offs.
What William Troost-Ekong said
“Getting here wasn’t easy,” Troost-Ekong reflected after the game. “We’ll take it one game at a time, and I believe we’re going to make it.
“I’m proud to be part of this team, part of this family. The boys are playing just like they do for their clubs. We need to keep supporting them.
“It’s easy to celebrate now, but it’s been a tough journey. Many said it was impossible, but we kept believing.
Now we need to love the players for who they are and their efforts. We know when to work and when to relax. We have an exceptional group and a big job ahead in Morocco.”
The Super Eagles’ earlier struggles understandably drew the ire of many Nigerian fans, most of whom just couldn’t wrap their heads around the poor results given the quality of the squad. However, Chelle’s men appear to have earned themselves the benefit of the doubt after that commanding display in Uyo to keep hope alive.
