Super Eagles stand-in captain, Wilfred Ndidi, has described as exciting the pressure on the team going into the 2026 World Cup qualifier against South Africa.
Nigeria will host South Africa in Uyo on June 7 and travel to Cote d’Ivoire to meet Benin Republic three days later.
Although South Africa have proved to be a big challenge to Nigeria in recent times, Ndidi said the Super Eagles are looking forward to the game, which will position the winner for a possible qualification for the World Cup to be hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Ndidi, who missed the last Africa Cup of Nations hosted by Cote d’Ivoire due to injury, said he was proud of the team when they beat the Bafana Bafana in the semifinal. He added that Nigeria would have won the AFCON if it had a complete set of players in the final.
“I was proud of the team even though we lost the final game. The difference between the teams was that the Ivoirians had different players in the final, while we had the same set of players throughout the competition.
“We had a tough time against the South Africans, but we will be meeting in a different setting at the World Cup qualifier.
“The Nations Cup and the World Cup qualifiers are two different things. The teams may not have the same set of players and the conditions are not the same, but the pressure that comes with this game is exciting.”
Ndidi said that the Super Eagles are bothered whatever they hear about South Africa, adding, “We are just going to stay focused and play our game.
“To be honest, South Africa is a good team. They gave us a tough time in the AFCON semifinal, which we won by penalties. But no two games are the same. It doesn’t matter what we played against them in the past, this will be different, and we will approach it as a fresh challenge.”
On his changing roles in midfield, Ndidi said he would play in any position the coaches assigned to him so long as it brings good results to his team.
“In Leicester City, I played as an attacking midfielder, but I don’t know where Coach Finidi George will put me in the Eagles. I will function wherever he puts me because he knows the team and will decide how he wants to approach the match.”
On the absence of Super Eagles top striker, Victor Osimhen, who has been ruled out of the games by injury, Ndidi said the team would miss the aggression the Napoli star brings to games.
“Osimhen is a big hustler; he never relaxes, and I think we will miss him. But we have some other strikers with different approaches to football.
“However, this is not the time to start thinking of absent players. I think it is the time to come together and play to win the games.”
The former Nath Boys star refused to be drawn into any discussion on Gernot Rohr and his impact on the Benin Republic, which Nigeria will meet on June 10.
“The main focus now is the South African game and not the match against Benin. We cannot be thinking of Benin when we have not played South Africa. It is one game at a time, after which we will turn to Benin Republic,” he said.
He described Finidi George as a good coach, who should not be judged by the results of the recent games against Ghana and Mali.
“Finidi George worked under difficult conditions in the friendlies. He had no assistant; he was the match reader, analyst and trainer put together. It was not easy for him.
“But now he has the full complement of assistants and I think he has settled down to do the job,” Ndidi said.
