Dalung to Meet NFF Technical Committee over Eagles Defeat in Uyo
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, is to hold an emergency meeting with the Technical Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on Tuesday.
According to a statement from the Special Assistant to the Minister (Media), Nneka Ikem-Anibeze, the meeting will hold in the Minister’s conference room at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja at 2pm.
Dalung’s meeting the NFF’s Technical Committee headed by Chris Green is coming on the heels of the Super Eagles AFCON 2019 qualifier 0-2 loss to visiting Bafana Bafana of South Africa at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo at the weekend. Nigeria is now third in the Group E table behind Libya and South Africa. Seychelles is the fourth team in the group.
Meanwhile, the Minister has called on football lovers and Nigerians generally to collectively support the Super Eagles in their quest for Africa Cup of Nations and World Cup tickets.
“This is a temporary setback which is surmountable. We need to sit with the Technical Committee and crew to find out the immediate and remote causes of this setback.
“We have very young talented players in the Super Eagles and we trust that with more hard work and determination, this result can be reversed when we go to South Africa.
“This is just the beginning of a long journey. The Super Eagles will definitely be in Cameroon because we can’t afford to be absent at the Africa Cup of Nations for a third consecutive time.
“We must do all within our means to support the team when they win and when there’s a setback. We will ensure that no stone is left unturned in our pursuit of a ticket to Cameroon.” Dalung assured football stakeholders.
Meanwhile, South Africa Head Coach Stuart Baxter has revealed that plaudits have continued to trail Bafana Bafana’s 2-0 defeat of Nigeria last weekend.
“I have received countless messages of congratulations, mostly from back home in South Africa. They are still trickling it and it goes to show what this win means for the country,” said an emotional Baxter.
“It is the way the victory was achieved which has been so emotional. The long trip to west Africa, the short preparation period and then go into the match and completely outplay the home favourites is something special,” reflected Baxter.
He said Bafana were cautious in the opening minutes but once they realised the Super Eagles were there for the taking, they completely took control of the game.
“We were comfortable on the ball, hit the post twice; I am absolutely delighted. This is what South Africa should do on a regular basis,” he said, touching on how successful Vision 2022 was penning out.