By Wale Mustapha
Former Nigeria captain Austin Okocha has offered his advice on how the Super Eagles can secure qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, urging belief and consistency from the national team.
Nigeria bolstered their qualification hopes with a victory over Rwanda in Kigali but failed to maintain momentum after a disappointing 1-1 draw with Zimbabwe.
The three-time African champions now sit fourth in Group C with seven points—six behind group leaders South Africa.
Okocha, who featured in three World Cups for Nigeria, remains optimistic about the team’s chances.
He emphasized the importance of winning the remaining four matches in the qualifying campaign.
“If we want to give ourselves any chance of qualifying, we have to be thinking of winning all our remaining matches,” Okocha said in an interview with iDiski Times.
“Of course, Bafana Bafana are top in the group. It will be a difficult game to play, but we still believe we can go there and win,” he added.
“If we want to qualify, those are the games that we need to win. I believe that we can win there, but it’s definitely not going to be easy.”
With South Africa leading the group, Nigeria faces a must-win scenario in the remaining fixtures to keep their World Cup dream alive.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
