Super Eagles’ captain, William Troost-Ekong has promised that all players in the Nigerian national team will be ready to take on Gabon in their first match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup play-offs next month in Morocco, then face the winner between DR Congo and Cameroon.
Sports247 reports that the Eagles will have to line out for the play-offs in November, following their inability to top Group C in the African qualifiers for the 2026 Mundial that will be co-hosted by USA, Canada and Mexico.
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Despite whipping Benin Republic 4-0 at Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo in their last match of the qualifiers, a shoddy start to the campaign meant the Eagles could not snatch top spot from South Africa, who even suffered a deduction of three points from their total haul for fielding an ineligible player against Lesotho.
Although William Troost-Ekong admitted the Eagles would have preferred getting an automatic qualification ticket as group winners, the Al-Kholood of Saudi Arabia defender conceded that they now have to seek redemption through the play-off route.
Rather than see the play-offs as a demeaning competition that would exert more stress on the players, Ekong affirmed that he and his colleagues will give it the best of their effort in order to eventually qualify for the first World Cup to be co-hosted by three countries.
“We are quite happy to have that opportunity. It is a long route, but it is a route after all. We would have loved to get the automatic ticket, but it didn’t happen, and we take what we have.
“For us, we will remain strong and tough and ready to confront every challenge on our way as we search for the ticket to the 2026 FIFA World Cup,” Ekong pledged.
Sports247 adds that Ekong and his teammates will now aim for victory over Gabon in the play-offs’ first semi-final on November 13th, while Cameroon tango Democratic Republic of Congo in the second game the next day; after which the two winners will clash on Sunday, 16th November.
The final winner will then be at the Intercontinental Play-offs scheduled for the Mexican cities of Guadalajara and Monterrey in March next year, when six countries will battle for just two tickets to the 2026 World Cup.
The contending six nations will be Africa’s winner as well as Bolivia, New Caledonia, Asia’s winner between Iraq and United Arab Emirates, plus two from among Jamaica, Costa Rica and Panama.
Should Nigeria qualify for the Intercontinental Play-offs, the Super Eagles will play only one match to book a World Cup ticket, as they would be seeded as the top rated country based on the latest FIFA monthly rankings.
