Photo Credit - Saudi Pro League club Al-Kholood.
Nigeria defender William Troost-Ekong has admitted their poor start to the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers put their chances to grab a ticket to the global competition on a difficult path but remained confident they have enough quality to salvage the situation.
Out of the opening four matches, the Super Eagles have not managed to register a win, only picking three draws and one defeat. They are currently lying fifth in the six team group with three points, four less than leaders Rwanda, South Africa and Benin, both with seven.
With Nigeria appointing former Mali boss Eric Chelle as head coach in January, they will be keen to make amends in their next two matches – against Rwanda’s Amavubi at Amahoro Stadium on Friday and Zimbabwe at Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo on Tuesday.
"Our chances for the World Cup are difficult as we lost some games in the first round,” said Troost-Ekong as quoted by DW. “However, in the next six games we have enough quality to get the results for us to make sure we are going to be there in 2026.
“As a captain, it is my responsibility to try and help him and make sure we can get results straight away. After appearing in six of the previous seven World Cups and making the knockout stages twice, failing to qualify for Qatar 2022 was a bitter blow. The defender blamed it on the playoff system.
“I did not think it was 100% fair, we won our group but against Ghana, we didn't qualify because of an away goal. Now at 31, I will be very, very happy for us to play at the World Cup in America so this is the main target for us now.”
In the Super Eagles’ group, Zimbabwe are last with two points.
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