Nigeria-born English National League side Oldham Athletic’s U19s Coach, Chuks Akuneto, has posited that Super Eagles must win their remainder matches in the Group C of the 2026 FIFA World Cup African qualifiers to stand a chance of earning a spot in the USA/Canada/Mexico showpiece, Completesports.com reports.
One-all draw with Bafana Bafana of South Africa Friday in Uyo appears to have boxed the three time African Champions into a tight corner, and Akuneto, a 46-year-old UEFA A licensed coach, reiterates that under the circumstances, the Super Eagles risk missing the World Cup party except they win all their remainder qualification matches in Group C.
Chuks Akuneto with Oldham Athletic’s former Academy Manager, Paul Murray
“I think the team is a new one with a ne,w manager and playing in a different formation,” Akuneto told Completesports.com analysing the match.
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“So I think they did okay with plenty of rooms for improvement.”
The Super Eagles now have three points after three rounds of matches in Group C which has Lesotho now on top of the standings with five points.
“That means we will have to win all our remaining games and hope others drop points,” Akuneto sounded, implying that Super Eagles’ chances of reaching the 2026 World Cup finals are no longer entirely in their own hands.
Identifying loopholes in Finidi George’s squad as he technically spotted during the clash against South Africa, and which must be addressed going into the crucial game against Republic of Benin in Aidjan, Akuneto reckons that there should be a balance between the front men and the back men.
“We need to get the balance between attack and defence right because we looked a bit too open defensively which resulted in South Africa creating about four clear opportunities as a result of our defence being overloaded by the Bafana Bafana incessant attacks,” Akuneto observed.
“We should stay compact and choose the right moments to attack”.
By Sab Osuji in Uyo
