Former Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick believes the Super Eagles still have a route to the 2026 FIFA World Cup despite a faltering qualifying campaign, Footynaija.com reports.
Nigeria have endured a dismal start, managing to win just one of their opening six matches and sitting fourth in Group C with just seven points, six adrift of leaders South Africa.
With only four games remaining, the team must take maximum points and hope other results fall in their favour to book a ticket to North America.
Pinnick, who oversaw Nigeria’s qualification for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, insists history shows that a turnaround is possible. He recalled that, back then, the Super Eagles navigated what many considered the ‘group of death.’
That group featured the reigning African champions at the time Cameroon, an Algeria side with an impressive unbeaten run, and a competitive Zambia team. Yet the Super Eagles still qualified for Russia 2018 without losing a game.
“The truth is, never say never until the final whistle,” Pinnick said, as quoted by Brila. “I know Nigeria’s mentality. In 2018, nobody gave us a chance.”
He added: “Cameroon were defending champions, Algeria were unbeaten in nearly 20 games, and Zambia were strong, but we qualified. That’s why I still keep the faith with this team.”
We fighting till the end pic.twitter.com/d4y1brdHY1
— Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) March 28, 2025
Nigeria’s struggles in recent years have heightened the pressure. The Super Eagles failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with their last appearance coming in 2018, a campaign Pinnick now regards as proof of the squad’s resilience under pressure.
Head coach Eric Chelle will be tasked with masterminding an unlikely comeback. September’s fixtures against Rwanda and South Africa will be pivotal before the qualification effort concludes in October with matches against Lesotho and Benin Republic.