As the Super Eagles warm up for their final 2025 AFCON qualifier against Rwanda on Monday, interim coach Augustine Eguavoen has reflected positively on the team’s campaign, despite their struggles to secure an away win.
Nigeria has already qualified for the tournament, sitting at the top of the group with 11 points.
The Super Eagles opened their qualifying campaign with a solid 3-0 victory at home against Benin.
However, their first away match ended in a goalless draw against Rwanda.
They followed this up with another narrow 1-0 win at home against Libya.
The away fixture against Libya was later forfeited after CAF ruled in Nigeria’s favour due to poor treatment of the Super Eagles’ delegation by the Libyan hosts, awarding Nigeria three points.
In their most recent away game, the Super Eagles managed a 1-1 draw against Benin.
Super Eagles players, William Troost-Ekong, Ademola Lookman and Alex Iwobi celebrate. Photo | X
Victor Osimhen salvaged a point with a crucial goal in the 81st minute, ensuring Nigeria remained unbeaten away from home.
At the pre-match press conference ahead of the clash against Rwanda, Eguavoen addressed concerns about the team’s away form.
When questioned about Nigeria’s inability to secure a victory on the road, the interim coach defended the team’s efforts.
“You can’t say it’s a poor away form; we didn’t lose any away game,” Eguavoen remarked. “Football today has gone beyond what it used to be and everybody always comes prepared against Nigeria.
Getting points away from home I think the team deserves some credit.”
Looking ahead to the World Cup qualifiers, Eguavoen was pragmatic about his future as head coach.
“World Cup will come but I don’t know if I will be incharge or not; if I’m incharge, we’ve spoken about it, we know that we have to win every game and we will approach each game as a final. So let that time come first.”
Nigeria’s World Cup qualifying campaign has been challenging, with the Super Eagles currently sitting in 5th place—second to last in their group—having only 3 points from four matches. To stand any chance of advancing, they must win all their remaining games.
