After nine months, former Super Eagles coach Austin Eguavoen has taken responsibility for Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar at the expense of Ghana.
Ghana qualified for their fourth World Cup in Qatar after defeating West African arch-rivals Nigeria on away goals in Abuja.
After a goalless first leg at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi, Black Stars Thomas Partey scored what turned out to be the crucial goal after 10 minutes, following a dreadful error by goalkeeper Francis Uzoho, despite Nigeria levelling the scores through captain William Troost-Ekong from the penalty spot.
But the Super Eagles missed several clear chances to win the match at the Moshood Abiola Stadium, with Victor Osimhen having the better chance to win the game in the final minutes of the ‘Jollof derby’.
Eguavoen on Brila FM’s Big Interview show said: “I failed to take Nigeria to the world tournament when I had the opportunity to; I was trusted with the responsibility. For this reason, I have only been able to watch very little of the games as it makes me even sadder.”
“Well, as head of the Nigeria Football Federation Technical Department, I will just have to start planning now and make sure that Nigeria gets to the next FIFA World Cup in 2026.”