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  Following the confirmation of South Africa as the host nation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup (the first on African soil), it became the dream of every African football nation to feature in the first World Cup on home soil.
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However, there was a hurdle to pass through before making it to the tournament, the qualifiers. Pitched in Group B of the 2010 African FIFA World Cup qualifiers alongside highly rated Tunisia, Kenya, and Mozambique, the coach Amodu Shuaibu led Super Eagles knew that they were confronted with a huge task. After a disappointing 0-0 draw against Mozambique in the first game of the qualifiers in Maputo, the Super Eagles bounced back with an encouraging 3-0 win over the Harambee Stars of Kenya in their second qualifiers match at the National Stadium, Abuja. From the first two games, Nigeria had 4 points but was two points behind group leaders, Tunisia that had won their first two games. The third round of qualifiers would see the Eagles seek to beat Tunisia so they can go top of the table as the qualifiers got intense. Nigerians commended the Super Eagles for a hard-fought 0-0 draw against the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia in Tunis and the Abuja stadium was filled to the brim when the Humberto Coelho led Tunisian side filed out against the Eagles on Sunday, September 6, 2009. Nigerians were left broken after the North Africans held the Super Eagles to a 2-2 draw. The draw meant the destiny of the Nigerian side was no longer in their hands, but there was still hope.
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On Saturday, October 10th, 2009, the highly-spirited Mozambican national team were up against the Eagles in Abuja, in a must-win game if Nigeria would stand any chance of qualifying for the global showpiece on the last day of qualifiers. The East Africans made use of the advantage of a deserted stadium as Nigerian fans showed their dissatisfaction for the result against Tunisia by not showing up in a large number in the match venue. Despite not being present at a large number in the stadium, Nigerians had their eyes glued to their television sets to see if Nigeria would win and stand a chance to qualify if Tunisia fails to win any of their last two games. The Super Eagles could not find the back of the net in the first half and in the second half, a considerable number of fans trooped into the stadium to help the national team lacking in motivation. After normal time, the score was still 0-0 and fans showed their dismay at the show from the lads. In the last minute of added time, Victor Obinna Nsofor headed home from six yards, in what was the last chance of the game and football fans all over the country celebrated what would serve as a morale booster to the Nigerian side that went on to qualify for the world cup after the Tunisians fell to a 1-0 loss against Mozambique in the last round of qualifiers. Sources: Goal Wikipedia Featured Image Source: Malaga CF
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This article was first published on 16th June 2021

ugo-chinedu

I am a Lion, I love to hit heights that seem impossible so I can motivate others and prove doubters wrong. For me, impossible is nothing. I'm open to learning and I love to read, travel and meet new faces.

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