By Deborah Ogbonda
The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) has commenced the process of filing a complaint against the South African Football Federation for fielding an ineligible player, Theboho Mokoena, in their 2-0 victory over Lesotho during the latest round of World Cup qualifiers at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on the 21st of March 2025, despite being aware that the player.
This situation paints a similar picture as what transpired in the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers where Nigeria fielded Shehu Abdullahi, a player who had accumulated two yellow cards in previous matches, against Algeria. As a result of that mistake, FIFA awarded Algeria a 3-0 win for the offense, luckily, the Nigerian Super Eagles had already secured qualification with a four-point lead.
If the World footballing Organization(FIFA) follows due process an punish the South African team, all things being equal, it would mean that Bafana Bafana would lose 3points with a three goals deduction, putting them on 10points, and Lesotho who are currently in 5th position with 6points would automatically take their place as second on the group with 9 points.
Also Read: Osimhen’s Brace Keeps Super Eagles’ Hope Alive
Nigeria, on the other hand, would only be 3 points behind South Africa instead of the current 6 points, which if nothing happens, would mean the chances of the Super Eagles qualifying for the 2026 WC would go down to 0.01 out of 10.
All the Nigeria fans can do now is hope and pray that the NFF comes out successful in their complaint against the South African Football Federation.
