Senegal forward, Sadio Mane has described Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar as a ‘big blow’ to the African continent.
The three-time African champions were denied a seventh appearance at the World Cup finals when they lost the ticket to rivals Ghana in the ‘Jollof Derby’ in March.
The Super Eagles failed to defeat the Black Stars at the national stadium in Abuja on March 29 after the first leg ended goalless at the Baba Yara Sports stadium in Kumasi.
The game which ended in a one-all draw saw the Black Stars progress ahead of the Super Eagles.
According to the 30-year-old Bayern Munich forward, Nigeria’s absence from this year’s Mundial is a huge blow to the African continent considering their pool of stars and beautiful style of football.
“Nigeria with their arrays of star players and entertaining brand of football will not be at the World Cup, the 30-year-old ex-Liverpool man said.
“That’s a blow to the continent. We have an ever-improving continent when it comes to football. It’s why you see players from Africa in top teams. It’s tough to win games these days. You have to be at your best all the time.”
Coach Eguavoen who was in charge of the Super Eagles on an interim basis resign following Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the global showpiece.
Other members of his technical team were shown the exit.
