Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong has challenged his teammates to step up their performance as they look to secure qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a win over Benin Republic on Tuesday.
Nigeria welcome Benin Republic to the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium on Tuesday, with eyes on booking their spot at next year’s tournament.
The three-time African champions must defeat the Cheetahs and hope that South Africa fail to win against Rwanda to finish as group C winners.
Speaking ahead of the game, Troost-Ekong who scored the opener in the 2-1 win over Lesotho last week, believes his team must improve on their performance to stand any chance of securing a win in the match.
“It is a very difficult job if you describe that to anyone, understanding the emotion and pressure. So many different factors but I will try to bring it to what we can control,” Ekong admitted.
“This is not a game that myself, the coach, the players can win for us. We need to have a shared responsibility, everyone has to step up, everyone has to take responsibility for the game tomorrow.”
Benin Republic currently top the group with 17 points, two ahead of second-placed South Africa, while Nigeria are back in third with 14 points.
All three nations stand a chance of reaching the 2026 tournament, but Nigeria will hope to seal a return after missing out on the 2022 edition in Qatar as well.
“And of course playing in the stadium, I will love to see it full. I think that would be a great encouragement for the team, the support that we need for the moment”, the Super Eagles captain added.
“We are playing for ourselves as well, we believe many times when people didn’t believe in us, we will continue to do so. I hope that tomorrow everyone will appreciate that and support the team.”
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