Nigeria Defender Makes Bold Statement Ahead of World Cup Playoffs Tie Against Ghana

• William Troost-Ekong says the Super Eagles can’t afford to miss out on a place in the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar after an early exit from the AFCON
• Nigeria were knocked out of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations after losing 1-0 to the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia in the Round-of-16
• The Super Eagles have been paired with arch-rivals and fellow West Africans Ghana in the final World Cup qualification round to determine Africa’s 5 representatives

William Troost-Ekong has declared the Super Eagles cannot afford to not qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after suffering an early exit from the Africa Cup of Nations.

Nigeria were surprisingly knocked out of the AFCON in the Round-of-16 after losing 1-0 to the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia.

The Super Eagles were tipped as heavy favourites to progress to the next round after an impressive group stage outing that saw the three-time AFCON champions bag 3 wins in 3 games.

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Nigeria will now move their attention to qualifying for the World Cup after being paired with perennial rivals and West African neighbours Ghana.

According to a report via Complete Sports, Troost-Ekong says the Super Eagles will make up for their early AFCON exit by ensuring they qualify for the World Cup.

“Obviously we are disappointed with the outcome of the game against Tunisia, but that is football, there is nothing we can do about it.

“The next target for us now is to qualify for the World Cup. The experience the last time in Russia was great and we are all looking forward to making it to Qatar this time around.

“We know how strong the Ghana team is. They have a lot of quality and young players in their team, but we will be up for it.”

The World Cup playoffs have been scheduled for the month of March with Ghana hosting the first leg in Accra on the 23rd while the return leg takes place in Nigeria on the 29th.

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Ghana To Play Nigeria In Accra or Kumasi

Earlier Sportsbrief reported the Black Stars of Ghana will host the Super Eagles of Nigeria in their 2022 World Cup qualifier play-offs at either the Accra Sports Stadium or the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi.

The National Sports Authority has informed the Ghana Football Association to consider the two venues for March's crucial game.

The Cape Coast Stadium which was used for Ghana's home games since the start of the qualifiers will serve as the grounds for this year's independence celebrations.