Kunle Adewale

Even though Nigeria let slip two points against Zimbabwe yesterday, potentially affecting their chances for the Super Eagles’ aspirations, their hopes of raising the flag at the 2026 FIFA World Cup might be bolstered as Group C frontrunners, South Africa, face the prospect of having three points deducted.

The South African national team, known as Bafana Bafana, has faced allegations regarding the use of an ineligible player during their game against Lesotho last Friday. Should the appeal made by the Lesotho Football Association to FIFA be successful,

If South Africa is deemed culpable, Nigeria might find itself well-placed to secure a spot in next year’s World Cup. This scenario would arise as Bafana Bafana face losing three points, bringing their cumulative score down to 10, which is only three points higher than Nigeria’s tally.

Nigeria presently faces the daunting challenge of securing a spot in the world’s premier event, as they trail leaders South Africa by six points in their group with only four matches remaining.

The Bafana Bafana team has faced allegations of playing with an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, during their 2-0 victory against Lesotho last Friday.

As per FIFA’s regulation number 63 for World Cup qualifiers, Mokoena ought to have faced suspension during the match with the Crocodiles since he had accumulated two yellow cards in the preceding fixtures of the same qualifying series.

The player from Mamelodi Sundowns received a yellow card during the 45th minute of South Africa’s 2-1 victory against Benin in matchday 1, and then got another yellow card at the 52nd minute of their 3-1 triumph over Zimbabwe in matchday 4.

Consequently, Mokoena ought to have missed the 2-0 victory against Lesotho.

Currently, FIFA has yet to issue an official statement regarding the situation.

The Lesotho Football Association (LFA) announced yesterday that they have submitted an inquiry to FIFA regarding the yellow cards amassed by Bafana Bafana’s midfield player Teboho Mokoena during the 2026 World Cup qualifier matches.

The query at hand is whether a rule has been violated. Should this be the case, we firmly believe we have the right to object and claim the points. We learned about Mokoena’s yellow cards and consequently submitted an official request for clarification to both CAF and FIFA,” noted Mokhosi Mohapi, who serves as the Secretary-General of the Lesotho Football Association.

We’ve learned that Nigeria also plans to protest, and they have every right to do so since the outcome (from last Friday) disadvantages all parties involved. If we had submitted a player who wasn’t eligible and received the points as a result, South Africa’s team would have taken similar action.

Mohapi stated that South Africa shouldn’t assume their closeness to Lesotho would exempt them from lodging a complaint. He added, “Regrettably, the rule of law prevails, and SAFA ought to have been aware of the yellow cards issued. There’s no ill will between us; we’re focused on claiming those points,” according to the reporter for the Lesotho Football Association.

The Super Eagles have similarly felt the impact of this regulation after losing three points due to playing an unqualified participant (Shehu Abdullahi) during their 2018 World Cup qualifier against Algeria.

Even though the game finished with a score of 1-1 on the field, the Desert Warriors received 3-0 technical points because Shehu had accumulated two yellow cards in earlier matches and was thus supposed to be banned from playing in this one.

Fortunately, the administrative mistake did not prove costly since Nigeria had already ensured their qualification prior to that inconsequential final game.

In South Africa’s situation, a deduction of three points would significantly impact their chances of qualification. As the 1996 African champions, they are leading the group with 13 points, placing them five points above both Benin and Rwanda, and six points higher than Nigeria.

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