The Super Eagles of Nigeria, the Republic of Benin, and South Africa will have their 2026 FIFA World Cup fate sealed on Tuesday evening, Soccernet.ng reports.
For Eric Chelle’s side, they must defeat Gernot Rohr’s Benin on home soil in Uyo, while Bafana Bafana must defeat Rwanda.
A victory for Nigeria doesn’t mean much if South Africa wins, as it’ll give Bafana Bafana a smooth passage into the Mundial Group stage.
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South Africa’s goalkeeper, Ronwen Hayden Williams, revealed there are doubts about his team’s chances of playing at a FIFA World Cup for the first time since 2010, due to the points deduction punishment issued by FIFA as a result of Hugo Broos’ side fielding an ineligible Teboho Mokoena against Lesotho.
“Of course, people have doubts now. If you look back a month ago, everything was clear for us to qualify for the World Cup — until FIFA deducted three points from us for fielding an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, against Lesotho in March,” the Mamelodi Sundowns goalkeeper said in quotes revealed by Sportswire.
Williams not confident in Benin ahead of Nigeria clash
For the 33-year-old goalkeeper, it feels like Deja vu ahead of their game against Rwanda at the Mbombela Stadium.
The venue carries mixed emotions for South African fans, as they celebrated the qualification for the 2013 AFCON after a draw with Sierra Leone in 2012. Unknown to them, CAF used the head-to-head rule instead of goal difference, which ultimately saw them miss out on the tournament- a competition they hosted.
“I still feel everything will work out in our favour, and people need to understand that. I believe in fairy tales,” the AFCON 2023 golden glove winner continued.
“I remember 12 years ago, we had calculators out — and at which stadium? Mbombela, and where are we going now? Mbombela again.
“Maybe this is our chance to correct the wrongs from that time. I’m positive, I have faith, and I believe the results will go our way.
“Now it’s for Nigeria to play Benin — and honestly, I can’t see Benin getting a result against Nigeria. But we still have to do our part.
“We know how important this game is, how tough it will be, and we have the squad to deal with Rwanda.
“There’s a lot of motivation behind this match. Rwanda is the only team [that has beaten us] in this campaign [slightly incorrect as they’ve lost two games, to Lesotho and Rwanda], and we know exactly what they put us through.
“There’s so much working in our favour, and the nation shouldn’t lose hope. Get behind the boys, keep sending those positive messages — we see everything.
“Don’t lose faith until it’s over. Maybe this time, things will fall our way, especially since we’re going back to Mbombela. Hopefully, we can right the wrongs of 12 years ago.
“For me, everything that happened — [the points deduction] — happened for a reason. Now it’s up to us to believe, to fight, and to show that we are a team,” the three-time PSL Champion concluded.
Nigeria against Benin Republic will be going on simultaneously at the same time, South Africa will lock horns against Rwanda.
For the Super Eagles to qualify, they have to defeat Benin Republic, and home Rwanda come out on top in the game at Mbombela.