Everything is set up for the Super Eagles of Nigeria to pull away from the competition in a weak Group C and all but seal their passage to the final round of FIFA World Cup qualifying in the CAF region this week. Facing Central African Republic in a doubleheader this week, Nigeria have done brilliantly to get a road victory in Cape Verde and win at home against Liberia in their first two games and now are focused on obtaining the maximum six points against Les Fauves, who have and are still dealing with plenty of adversity. 5,000 fans will be allowed into the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos on Thursday to further boost the Super Eagles as well.
The Nigeria squad do have some off-pitch distractions to deal with themselves, with reports getting louder and louder of the Nigeria Football Federation’s failures to not only pay their players but also manager Gernot Rohr. While Rangers FC center back Leon Balogun previously voiced his and the players disgruntlement back in July over the issue, on Wednesday Rohr refused to address the question and stated his full focus is on Central African Republic. Ahmed Musa and Joe Aribo stated in pre-match comments that the team is eager to get the job done and will not overlook an opponent who are heavy underdogs in both matchups this week.
Les Fauves are in last place in the group and will field a side that continues to be weakened by the unavailability of its more prominent members based abroad, with star midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia refusing to report for the remainder of the qualifying campaign. The 28-year-old Atlético Madrid player, only three years after making the commitment to represent Central African Republic, spoke out about how a lack of professionalism in the organization of the country’s football as well as the lack of a suitable home venue are the main reasons for him making himself unavailable while stating his hope of one day returning to represent Les Fauves if the situation improves.
Links to pre-match news are below.
