Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) yesterday released the seedings that will be used to determine how teams will be grouped alongside each other in the race to be at the Russia 2018 World Cup.
The poor ranking of the Super Eagles of Nigeria by world football governing body FIFA in their monthly rankings could see them draw one of the top five teams they would have loved to avoid in the final hurdle to be at the World cup.
Nigeria are in Pot 2 alongside Egypt,Cape Verde,Congo and Mali meaning they can’t be in same group like the aforementioned teams but while there’s the prospect of drawing one of Cameroon,Morocco,Guinea or South Africa in Pot 3, Pot 1 is where the fear is for the Super Eagles of Nigeria.
Pot 1 consist of Algeria,Cote d’Ivoire,Ghana,Senegal and Tunisia, the top ranked team in Africa by FIFA and they will be spread around the five qualifying groups which means Nigeria will definitely be in same group with one of the five.
While that already look hard on paper to navigate, the Super Eagles of Nigeria are still without a substantive coach following the resignation of Sunday Oliseh and the redeployment of Samson Siasia to the U-23s after a failed stint as caretaker manager where he failed to qualify them for next year cup of nations by failing to beat Egypt in two ties.
Presently Salisu Yusuf is handling the team in interim capacity but they are reports claiming he could be handed the job on a permanent base if the Nigeria Football Federation fail to raise money to hire a foreign coach of their desire.
*Rasheed Michael
