Qatar 2022 qualifier: Akanni urges Super Eagles on early preparation

Waidi Akanni, an ex-football international, on Thursday urged handlers of the Super Eagles to begin preparation now for their clash with Ghana in the upcoming 2022 World Cup qualifier.

Akanni gave the advice in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos, against the backdrop of the Super Eagles’ performance in the ongoing 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon.

The Super Eagles are drawn to face their Ghananian counterparts in March, in the play-off round of the Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022 African qualifiers.

Nigeria’s Super Eagles, after an impressive start in the 2021 AFCON, crashed out following a 0-1 loss to Tunisia in a Round of 16 match.

Akanni said, “I think it’s March 24; if Nigeria must qualify for the World Cup, we need to defeat Ghana.”

”We must start preparation now with home based players, with the home based players in camp under whoever the coach the federation chooses is.”

“This will bring back a sense of seriousness and opportunities for all the players, home and abroad, to fight for a shirt; we can’t continue to depend on all foreign players. AFCON was an eye opener.”

“A home-based Eagles camp will also give the coaches opportunity to see the boys in our domestic league, our Nigeria Professional Football League is on now.”

”The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) needs to appoint a coach now, Accra will likely be extremely difficult for the first match,” he said.

Our correspondent reports that the World Cup is scheduled to hold from Nov. 22 to Dec. 18 in five host cities.

So far, Netherlands, Argentina,Iran and South Korea have qualified for the tournament.