The 1994 Super Eagles squad are always remembered as the Golden Generation of Nigerian football for their exploits at the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia and the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, where they finished in the second round, despite being Nigeria’s first outing at the global football event. An interesting part of the late 20th century Eagles was that they were ranked 5th best footballing nation on earth by April 1994, a feat no African team has achieved till date.
Following the appointment of Dutchman, Clemens Westerhof, in 1989 as head coach of the Nigerian team, the team would go through a thorough rebuilding process that saw them emerge Silver medalists at the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations in Algeria, bronze at the 1992 AFCON in Senegal, winning the 1994 AFCON in Tunisia to become African champions for the second time, and also qualifying for Nigeria’s first outing at the FIFA World Cup in 1994.
The majority of the 1994 Eagles squad would also go on to win Gold at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games in the United States of America. Nigeria’s ranking as 5th on the global football log in April 1994 has not been replicated by any African country in history.
Sources:
Buzz Nigeria
Complete Sports
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