Super Eagles’ captain, William Troost-Ekong has described the Nigerian national team’s inability to qualify for next year’s FIFA World Cup as a shame, embarrassment and disappointment not only for the team and country but him personally, Sports247 reports.
The Al-Kholood of Saudi Arabia defender admitted further that missing out on a ticket to the first Mundial to be co-hosted by three countries is a huge setback for all Super Eagles’ players and a tough psychological challenge that he won’t be able to quickly overcome.
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Ekong disclosed in a deeply emotional tone, “This is one of the most difficult moments in my career. It’s something that I’m already struggling to overcome, but it’s not easy.
“I know what both sides of life feel like, and this issue of no qualification has made us see both sides of the coin in the line of football.”
The experienced centre back, who has previously played for Watford of England, PAOK Saloniki of Greece, RKC Genk of Belgium and Udinese of Italy, among many other clubs, also admitted that the Eagles felt so sure of picking a ticket before the qualifiers began.
“Initially, earlier on, we were quite confident that we would qualify … after seeing the other teams that were in our group.
“Sincerely, there were no other major teams in Africa, so to speak, that we could talk about in that group. We eventually struggled to make it out but still could not qualify,” Ekong lamented.
He concluded with metaphoric expressions to describe the depressive emotional impact felt by all the players and himself after they were still unable to make it to USA/Canada/Mexico 2026 through the play-off route.
“You eventually get overwhelmed with that feeling of shame and embarrassment. You also feel disappointment for yourself, the team and all Nigerians,” Ekong acknowledged.
