2026 World Cup Race: Super Eagles captain, Ekong, says Eagles feel great to be back in contention

Posted : 23 March 2025

Sitting quietly in a corner of the departure hall at Kigali International Airport, Super Eagles captain William Ekong had a relaxed demeanor and did not mince words in stating that Friday’s victory over Rwanda’s Amavubi was exactly the statement the Eagles needed as the World Cup race reached its halfway mark.

“It was important to make the statement that we did, and we’re all happy about it and the way we did it.

"We have not qualified yet, and there’s still a lot of work to do, but we have started our recovery in a good way, and we just have to keep working hard.

“I don’t want to dwell on the circumstances that led to the first four matches going the way they did. The good thing is that we can still recover and revive the campaign, and we have taken the first step.”

Ekong’s firm leadership, combined with the energy of Victor Osimhen, Ademola Lookman, and Moses Simon, was evident and impactful as the Eagles secured a 2-0 win over hosts Rwanda at the Amahoro Stadium, evoking memories of the strong squad that thrilled fans and came within 23 minutes of lifting the Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d'Ivoire early last year.

As the chartered ValueJet Airline CRJ-900 aircraft touched down at Victor Attah International Airport, Uyo, at exactly 2 PM on Saturday, Ekong stated that he would be rallying the team ahead of Tuesday’s Matchday 6 encounter against the Warriors of Zimbabwe.

“We read somewhere that the Zimbabweans are being motivated to come to Uyo and get a result. They should forget it.

"We are highly motivated by our ambition to play at the FIFA World Cup. Apart from myself, Alex (Iwobi), and perhaps a couple of others who were part of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, this generation is hungry to compete at the highest level.

"We want to make Nigeria proud and, at the same time, make ourselves proud.”

Victor Osimhen, whose brace shattered Amavubi’s hopes and disappointed the capacity crowd that included President Paul Kagame, echoed similar sentiments at Victor Attah Airport.

“We are ready. The remaining matches are battles, and we must fight with everything we have to win.”

A victory on Tuesday evening would take Nigeria to nine points and put them firmly in contention for the qualification ticket, especially if Benin Republic and South Africa cancel each other out at Abidjan’s Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny.

2026 World Cup Race: Super Eagles captain, Ekong, says Eagles feel great to be back in contention

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