Former Nigeria International Brown Ideye believes the Super Eagles would face herculean task in their remaining four matches in the qualification tournament for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Super Eagles are languishing in their Group C section with seven points where South Africa currently tops with 13 points while both Rwanda and Benin followed suit with eight points each.
Speaking on the Super Eagles chances, Ideye said the Super Eagles had been undone in many of their previous matches, adding they must be mentally strong to break the rut so secure a ticket to World Cup 26 to be jointly hosted by USA, Canada and Mexico.
“A lot of things went wrong (in the previous matches) ,” Ideye said in an interview aired on Brila Fm. “When you’re reshuffling players and coaches, it’s the team that suffers the consequences.
“When the group draw was announced, everyone believed we were in the easiest group. But I feel many underrated some of these teams, assuming they would be easy walkovers.”
According to Ideye, the Eric Sekou Chelle-led side would have their hands full in their next upcoming four matches in September and October to have any realistic chance of making it to next year’s Mundial.
He continued: “Any team playing Nigeria is coming with their A-game. They are not just going to watch us pass them by. For them, it’s everything — they’ll do whatever it takes to qualify for the World Cup.”
“I believe now the players understand that it’s not as easy as they thought. The upcoming game is a do-or-die situation and extremely important for the country. Everyone must be fully focused and committed,” added Ideye who won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013.