Don’t blame venue for Nigeria’s loss, says Akanni

Nigeria may not have qualified for the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, but the top notch preparation that went into the build-up ahead of the Abuja game has been commended.

Ex-international, Waidi Akanni, while still lamenting Nigeria’s inability to qualify for the World Cup, said the federal government deserves a pat on the back for the excellent preparation of the Moshood Abiola Stadium.

Akanni, who is the CEO of Match International, noted that efforts put into the build-up was unprecedented in the country’s history. “Truth be told, I have never seen a situation in which we prepared for a game the way we did against Ghana. What we had could pass as exceptional preparation- not seen in recent times. The federal government through the sports ministry put everything into our preparation to ensure we had a world-class venue,” he said.

“The minister Sunday Dare and the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Ismail Abubakar, were on everybody’s neck to see that virtually everything needed was in place. The SA to the President Daniel Amokachi, Mary Onyali, the stadium manager, all the directors in the ministry worked round the clock.

“They all deserve a pat on the back. It is only unfortunate that on match day proper, our boys failed to come to the party a situation that saw us failing to pick the World Cup ticket.”

Akanni stressed that if the Super Eagles players had fought the way the sports ministry did ahead of the game Nigeria’s flag would have been hoisted in Qatar.

“We may not have qualified but those whose efforts deserve commendation must be commended,” Akanni stated.

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