Troubles at the worst moment: Nigeria players & staff boycott training!

There's no peace in the Nigerian national team. After the mediocre 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign in which they barely secured their spot in the playoffs, the outlook was expected to be brighter, especially considering the importance of the semi-final clash against Gabon and the eventual final. After all, only one of the four competitors will keep its WC dreams alive.

However, apparently nothing goes smoothly when it comes to the Super Eagles...

'Cameroonian war' is still on: Kofane rejects national team call-up because of Eto'o?!

Just a day before the match against the Panthers (19.00), news emerged that Nigeria players and staff had boycotted training yesterday due to unpaid allowances and match bonuses, some of which date back to 2019!

They demanded a swift resolution from the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), or otherwise, the national team's World Cup qualification could be at stake, as this was obviously the last warning for the NFF officials.

A journalist Oluwashina Okeleji revealed the information on X, and Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong re-shared the post, sending a firm message.

"Once resolution is found we will be the first to confirm. Any other statement/claim or eSPECIALly demands other than the rightful request written about below is FALSE. All we want and continue to do is focus on the big games ahead," the defender wrote.

Now, the people of Nigeria can only hope the issue will be resolved as soon as possible - ideally before the game against Gabon. Otherwise, one of the African giants could miss its second consecutive World Cup.

2026 FIFA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS - AFRICA

Play-off semi-finals

Thursday

19.00: (1.90) Nigeria (3.10) Gabon (4.80)

22.00: (2.35) Cameroon (2.75) DR Congo (3.65)

***odds are subject to change***