By Wale Mustapha
Gernot Rohr, head coach of the Benin Republic men’s national football team, has named Remo Stars’ goalkeeper Serge Obassa in his final 23-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Obassa, who has been in exceptional form as the starting goalkeeper for Remo Stars in the current Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) season, earned his first call-up from Rohr in November 2024 for a 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Nigeria.
However, he is yet to make his official debut for the Cheetahs.
The squad also includes key players such as captain Steve Mounié, Junior Olaitan, Tijani Mohamed, and Dossou Jodel, who are all regulars in the national team.
Benin’s Cheetahs are set to face Zimbabwe’s Warriors at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Thursday, March 20.
The West African team will then host South Africa’s Bafana Bafana in Abidjan five days later.
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.
