Nigeria’s minister of sport, John Ewan Enoh, has said following the mistreatment of the Super Eagles in Libya, the players’ safety was the priority of the Nigerian government and not the African Nations Cup qualifier which the team travelled to the North African country to play.
Enoh said the government would ensure the players’ safety despite the desire of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) that the match go on as scheduled.
The minister, in a post on X, on Monday, October 14, condemned the treatment meted out to players and officials of the Super Eagles by the Libyan authorities.
According to him, the Super Eagles, who arrived in Libya on Sunday, October 13, for the reverse version of the AFCON 2025 Group D qualifiers match were en route to Benghazi but were diverted to Al Abaq Airport, which is hours away from Benghazi, where their match was slated to take place.
Enoh stressed that with the team’s experience in Libya, the safety of the team was not guaranteed and the team had insisted that it would not go ahead with the match.
He added that he had instructed the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to lodge a formal complaint to CAF.
Enoh said he was on a conference call with the CAF President, Patrice Motsepe, and CAF Secretary General, Veron Mosengo-Omba on Monday morning. Enoh also briefed relevant government authorities in Nigeria about the development.
He added that while the CAF president’s concern seemed to be what to do to get the Super Eagles to participate in the match scheduled for Tuesday, October 15, he informed the CAF that the concern of the government and people of Nigeria was the safety of the team and its safe return to Nigeria.
“All hands must be on deck to protect our national team. The team has succinctly stated that they have been unattended to for upwards of about 15 hours since arrival with no food, no accommodation, left in a mosquito-infested environment and cordoned off by Libyan security not to step out of the airport.
“To say the least, they face an almost ‘hostage’ situation. These are sportsmen set to compete in an AFCON qualifying match come Tuesday! For now, our primary concern is the safety of the members of our national team,” Enoh stated.
The ICIR reported how the Super Eagles vowed to pull out of the match.
Stand-in captain of the Super Eagles, Williams Troost-Ekong, revealed this on his X page Monday morning, “12 hours” after the team arrived at Al Abraq Airport Libya and was abandoned by the Libyan Football Federation.
The team chartered ValueJet aircraft from Nigeria and expected to touch down at the Benghazi Airport in the host country but was diverted to Al Abraq Airport, where they would travel by road for three hours before reaching Benghazi where the match would be played.
The ICIR reliably learnt that no official of the Libya Football Federation welcomed the players and their gaffers.
The Super Eagles defeated the Libyan Mediterranean Knights 1:0 at the Uyo Stadium on Friday, October 11 and hoped to be victorious again in the oil-rich North African nation.
Reacting, Troost-Ekong said his team was ready to concede the three points to Libya and would not risk the lives of its members.
“Twelve+ hours in an abandoned airport in Libya after our plane was diverted whilst descending. The Libyan government rescinded our approved landing in Benghazi with no reason. They’ve locked the airport gates and left us without a phone connection, food or drink. All to play mind games.
“This kind of behaviour, let them have the points. We will not accept to travel anywhere by road here even with security it’s not safe. We can only imagine what the hotel or food would be like given to us if we continued.
“We respect ourselves and respect our opponents when they are our guests in Nigeria. Mistakes happen but these things on purpose have nothing to do with int. football,” he said.
Reports indicate that the Libyan authorities intentionally delayed the Nigerian team’s movement, with directives allegedly given to airport officials to keep the team at the Al Abaq Airport.
The ICIR reports that the development might not be unconnected with the incident that happened when the Libyan football team visited Nigeria last week to play the first leg of the qualifier.
On Tuesday, October 8, after landing in Uyo, the Libyan team voiced its dissatisfaction, alleging mistreatment by the NFF.
It complained that the NFF treated its members badly by taking them through a long, tortuous journey by road, from the Port Harcourt International Airport to Uvo in a vehicle without air conditioning.
According to reports, Libya’s national team captain, Faisal Al-Badri, publicly criticised their treatment upon arrival in Nigeria, stating that Nigerian officials had hindered their smooth entry into the country.
However, the NFF refuted the claims, insisting that the Libyan Football Federation created chaos for its own team.
NFF’s Assistant Director (Protocol), Emmanuel Ayanbunmi, stated that the Libyan Football Federation notified the NFF just three hours before the team’s arrival that the team would be landing in Port Harcourt instead of Uyo.
Ayanbunmi also said that the Libyan delegation disregarded the road transport arrangements provided by the NFF, opting instead to hire buses on its own.
Many Nigerians have also reacted with anger and disbelief at the treatment meted out to the Super Eagles.
While expressing their outrage, they called for the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to investigate the incident and hold the Libyan authorities to account.
A reporter with the ICIR
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