Head coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro says the fixtures in group C of the qualifiers for the 2026 is skewed in the favor of South Africa, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Nigeria started their campaign in the qualifiers on a shaky note with a 1-1 draw against Lesotho in Uyo and will tomorrow take on Zimbabwe in their second group game of the series just 48 hours after the first game.
South Africa started the series on a sound note beating Benin Republic 2-1 and won’t be in action until three days time when they take on Rwanda in their second group game.
Peseiro lamented over the fact that Nigeria had to play their first game on Thursday, a time that didn’t afford them more training session with most of the invited players arriving camp on Tuesday meaning they only had one full session before the game against Lesotho.
“We didn’t prepare well, even the players didn’t rest well because some players came on Monday, others on Tuesday. We could not train with intensity in that moment. Yesterday we trained but not with intensity because we must play today. For that I ask why the match was scheduled for Thursday.
“Next three days my team is going to play Zimbabwe. Why should South Africa play tomorrow, we played today. Why? I don’t know.
“Our team is the best in the group, we drew but I think we will win the next match but our players must make sacrifices”, he said shortly after the draw against Lesotho.
On the other hand, South Africa played three days later meaning they had more time to perfect their tactics and formation for the game against Benin Republic. Ahead of the second round of games, they still have more days to rest than Nigeria.
Mohammed Mowiz
