Former Nigeria international Samuel Sodje has criticised Nigerian fans for celebrating FIFA’s decision to dock South Africa three points in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, calling the reaction “embarrassing.”
Bafana Bafana were punished for fielding suspended midfielder Teboho Mokoena in their 1-0 win over Lesotho in March. The ruling overturned the result, awarding Lesotho a 3-0 victory and moving South Africa down to second in Group C behind Benin on goal difference.
Nigeria and Rwanda are three points behind with two rounds of matches to play, but Sodje insisted the Super Eagles should focus on securing results on the pitch rather than banking on rivals misfortune.
“It’s nice to see FIFA doing what they have to do. For South Africa, they did break the rules, and they’ve taken three points off them. I think that’s normal,” he told Soccernet.ng. “What’s surprising now is Nigerians are seeing this as big news. I think it’s embarrassing.”
Sodje argued that the Super Eagles, with their talent pool and pedigree, should be shaping their own destiny on the pitch rather than relying on sanctions against rivals.
“We’ve put ourselves in a situation where we have to depend on South Africa losing points to qualify. If we have any slim chance, hopefully we can earn it on the pitch,” he said.
“A big country like Nigeria, a footballing nation, shouldn’t be celebrating points being taken off South Africa. Hopefully we can learn from this and get things right going forward.”
With two games left, Nigeria trail Benin and South Africa by three points in the race for a place at the 2026 World Cup.
By: Pascal Amoah
