Nigeria’s Super Eagles are heading into the knockout stages of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with full backing from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), President Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau has confirmed.
Following Saturday’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Tunisia in Fes, which came after a 2-1 opening win against Tanzania, Mr Gusau congratulated the team and Nigerians for a display of skill, unity, and determination.
“It’s not easy. When you come to this kind of tournament, you always feel happy when you see that after two matches, you have secured your slot to the round of 16 and by the grace of God, we’ll take it up from there,” he said.
Photo Credit: Imago
The NFF president highlighted the challenges of assembling players from multiple clubs on short notice. “These boys are brought down from so many different clubs.
In most qualifiers, we have only nine to ten days to play two matches, including travel to other venues. It’s always very difficult to bring them together in such a short period and expect top performance,” he explained.
Photo Credit: AFP
Despite these challenges, Mr Gusau said the Eagles are showing clear progression.
“If you observe our first match, which was after just one week of assembling, compared to today, you can see the difference. In tournaments, players have enough time to blend and understand each other, and that’s why you see improvement match after match.”
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He also stressed the importance of motivating the players. “We only saw a few days ago that the president of Nigeria gave the players what they were promised after finishing second in AFCON last year.
We are doing our best. Match in, match out, we encourage them by providing incentives so we can reach the final and ultimately lift the trophy.”
Photo Credit: NFF Comms
Mr Gusau called on Nigerians to continue their support. “The Super Eagles are making Nigerians proud and deserve the full backing of the nation. Support from fans at home and abroad is vital as the competition enters its decisive stages,” he said.
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The Eagles will face Uganda in their final group game on Tuesday at 4 p.m. in Fes, while Tunisia meets Tanzania in Rabat simultaneously. Nigeria previously lifted the AFCON trophy in 1980, 1994, and 2013 and are now chasing a fourth continental crown.
