Super Eagles head coach, Jose Peseiro has reacted to the team’s 1-1 draw against Lesotho in their opening game of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Uyo stressing that it was an ill-fated encounter rather than a flat-footed performance.
The Super Eagles failed to inspire under a rainy atmosphere at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, as they were held at home by their visitors in front of a handful of fans who surprisingly stayed away from the game.
Africa Today News, New York reports that Lesotho are ranked 153rd in the world – 113 places behind Nigeria who are 40th.
After a goalless first half, Motlomelo Mkwanazi gave Lesotho a shock lead from a corner before West Brom centre-back Semi Ajayi headed Nigeria level from a Kelechi Iheanacho’s corner 11 minutes later.
Peseiro’s men continued their dominance but couldn’t break their resilient visitors who snatched a point.
“We had 76 per cent of the ball possession to their 24 percent. We played against a team that had just two shots while we were unlucky in the attack. We are sad about the result,” Peseiro said during the post-match presser.
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Nigeria’s draw against the minnows hands the advantage in Group C to South Africa and Benin Republic who are yet to play in the qualifying series.
Meanwhile, Nigeria are second in the group behind Lesotho while Rwanda and Zimbabwe who also played a goalless draw on Wednesday are third and fourth.
The Super Eagles will next face Zimbabwe at their adopted ground in Rwanda on Sunday.
In another report, players of Zimbabwe’s senior men’s national team otherwise known as Zimbabwean Warriors, have threatened to boycott training ahead of their next World cup qualifier over unpaid allowances.
The team is in Rwanda where they are preparing for their second Group C match of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria‘s Super Eagles at Huye Stadium in Butare on Sunday.
Africa Today News, New York reports that the Warriors held Rwanda to a goalless draw in their opening game on Wednesday,
According to The Herald, the players are disgruntled with the non-payment of their daily allowances by the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) Normalisation Committee which have carried a bloated staff complement to Rwanda.