Tinubu approves N12b for Eagles, others as Nigeria, Guinea clash

The Federal Government, yesterday, announced the approval of N12 billion to clear the debts owed players and officials of the Super Eagles ahead of the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations, which begins on Saturday in Cote d’Ivoire.

The money is also expected to offset the debts owed other national teams of various categories. Current and past players of the Super Eagles, including the immediate past coach of the team, Gernot Rohr and his successor, Jose Peseiro, are owed salaries and outstanding allowances for as long as three years.

A statement on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle, yesterday, stated that the Federal Government has approved the payment of N12 billon outstanding backlog for Nigeria’s national teams of various sports, which includes Super Eagles and others.

It added: “The payment entails the clearing of the senior national team coach’s salaries running up to 15 months, payments of allowances and promises due to the senior national teams, females, and U-20 national team.”

Meanwhile, the Super Eagles had their first test game against a local Abu Dhabi side yesterday with Francis Uzoho, Ahmed Musa, Joe Aribo and Frank Onyeka in the starting lineup.

Other players in the team were Zaidu Sanusi, Calvin Bassey, Chidozie Awaziem, Sadiq Umar, Ademola Lookman, Victor Osimhen and Ola Aina. The friendly game, according to camp sources, was to try some of the players that have not featured regularly for the team alongside some of the A stars.

The Super Eagles will play a more difficult opponent today in the Syli Nationale of Guinea to test the team’s readiness for the opening game against Equatorial Guinea at Cote d’Ivoire 2024.

The Super Eagles are in Group A of the four-week, 24-nation finals alongside host nation Cote d’Ivoire and Africa’s other two Guinean nations – Equatorial Guinea and Guinea Bissau.

The Syli Nationale was one of Africa’s strongest teams in the 1970 and 1980s, winning the silver medals at the 1976 Africa Cup of Nations in Ethiopia, and giving the so-called big teams a good run for their money at the Africa Cup and in FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.

The Super Eagles pipped Syli Nationale 1-0 in a group phase encounter at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. Far back in 1981, Syli Nationale held the Eagles to a 1-1 draw in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Conakry, and in Lagos, Nigeria won with a long-range Henry Nwosu strike to the far corner of Abdoulaye Keita’s goal.

Today’s encounter will hold at the Bani Yas Stadium and is sure to slightly open a window into the mind of Coach Peseiro and how he intends to line out his army when Africa’s flagship football championship begins next weekend.

Twenty-four of Nigeria’s 25-man squad assembled in the Gulf earlier in the week and have been training ahead of the continental house party, with forward Kelechi Iheanacho hampered by injury and set to join the group in Lagos tomorrow evening, ahead of departure to the Ivoirian capital on Wednesday.

Nigeria is seeking a fourth African title (after wins in 1980, 1994 and 2013), which will put them at par with West African arch-rivals Ghana and leave only Egypt (seven wins) and Cameroon (five wins) ahead of them in the inverted pyramid of glory.