Former Leeds United defender Dylan Kerr has dismissed Nigeria’s chances of winning the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, Soccernet.ng reports.
Kerr insists that the Super Eagles’ recent struggles away from the continental stage expose deeper flaws beneath their impressive start in Morocco.
Nigeria cruised through the group phase with a perfect record, winning all three matches to emerge as one of the early favourites for the title.
But Kerr, a former Kaizer Chiefs head coach, believes those results mask fundamental weaknesses that will be exposed in the knockout rounds.
The 58-year-old points to Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup as evidence that the Super Eagles lack the consistency and balance required to lift major trophies.
Indeed, Nigeria missed out on the World Cup through two painful setbacks: first losing automatic qualification to South Africa, before falling to the Democratic Republic of Congo in the final African playoff match in Morocco. The defeat confirmed Nigeria’s second consecutive absence from the World Cup finals, following their failure to qualify for Qatar 2022.
While those results briefly dampened morale around Nigerian football, optimism has returned following commanding displays at AFCON 2025 under head coach Eric Chelle.
Despite the momentum, Kerr remains unconvinced.
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What did Dylan Kerr say about Nigeria?
“Nigeria should have a good team but they didn’t qualify outright for the World Cup, so something must not be good on the side of their game,” Kerr told Flashscore.
Asked why the Super Eagles, with a 100 percent record, cannot win the AFCON, he responded:
“Not really, the good run in the group stage puts them under pressure because they have won all of them. Usually, the teams that struggle end up making the semi-finals and final.”
Nigeria now face Mozambique in the Round of 16. The Mambas qualified after a dramatic 3-2 win over Gabon, a result that secured their first appearance in an AFCON knockout stage and ended a 40-year wait for a victory at the finals.
On the tie, Kerr was cautious but clear.
“You never know. It will be a tough game, and can go either way. I fancy Mozambique to give Nigeria a good game.”
History favours the three-timeAfricanchampions. The Super Eagles are unbeaten in five previous meetings with Mozambique, winning four and drawing once. Their only AFCON encounter ended in a dominant 3-0 victory in 2010.
Determined to repeat that outcome, head coach Eric Chelle has held closed training sessions with his squad over the past three days as Nigeria prepare for what Kerr believes could be a defining test of their title credentials.