The Minister of Sports Development, Sen. John Owan-Enoh, has raised concerns following the Super Eagles’ draw against the Crocodiles of Lesotho on Thursday in Uyo. The minister expressed his worry in a statement released on Friday in Abuja.
The Eagles opened their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign with a lackluster 1-1 draw with lowly rated Lesotho at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo.
Owan-Enoh, who attended the match at the stadium like other sports-loving Nigerians, remarked that the result fell short of expectations.
“The Government and football-loving people of Nigeria take the qualification for the 2026 World Cup very seriously and want the Super Eagles to qualify.
“Having missed out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, qualifying for the 2026 World Cup is non-negotiable,” he emphasized.
The minister urged the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the technical crew to promptly address the observed shortcomings from the Thursday match, ahead of the match against Zimbabwe on Sunday.
“I urge the Nigeria Football Federation to promptly rectify all the identified deficiencies from Thursday’s match with the aim of delivering a much stronger performance in Rwanda on Sunday, Nov. 19, against Zimbabwe,” he stressed.
Expressing concerns about the broadcasting limitations that prevented some Nigerians from watching the national team in action, Owen-Enoh urged the NFF to register Nigeria’s dissatisfaction with the appropriate authorities.
“We understand that the qualifiers are FIFA-organized, and so the television broadcasting rights are within the purview of the world football governing body.
“It is not satisfactory that many Nigerians could not watch their national team play in their country.
“A repeat of the same should be avoided, and NFF will be expected to register Nigeria’s displeasure with the appropriate authority in FIFA,” he insisted.
The minister called on all Nigerians to throw their support behind the team, while urging them to display sharper gameplay throughout the remaining qualifying series.
NAN
