Golden Eaglets boss Eboboritse Uwejamomere apologises after WAFU B U-17 exit

Golden Eaglets head coach Eboboritse Uwejamomere has apologised to Nigerians after the team were eliminated in the group stage of the 2026 WAFU B U-17 championship in Burkina Faso.

Nigeria’s failure to progress from the regional tournament also ended their hopes of qualifying for the 2027 U-17 AFCON in Morocco. As a result, the Golden Eaglets will not feature at the 2027 U-17 World Cup, having last appeared at the competition in 2019.

The Golden Eaglets needed victory against Cote d’Ivoire in their second Group A match on Saturday to reach the semi-finals. They had begun their campaign with a 2-1 defeat by Niger Republic.

However, they could only manage a 1-1 draw against Cote d’Ivoire, a result which confirmed their elimination from the competition.

Reflecting on the campaign, Uwejamomere said the outcome had left both the squad and coaching staff deeply disappointed.

“Obviously, the first impressions are unhappiness, disappointment. Now we are out of the tournament and the bigger picture is that we won’t go to the U-17 AFCON next year, so we are unhappy and very disappointed overall,” he said.

The coach urged his players, who are aged 15 and 16, to treat the experience as an opportunity to learn as they begin their careers in elite football.

“For my players, obviously young boys, 15, 16 year olds, they still have years ahead of them. This is like the first chapter of their career going into elite football,” he said.

“So it’s just to learn from this and use this as an experience going forward in their career.”

Uwejamomere also acknowledged the frustration felt by supporters in Nigeria, who had expected the team to win and qualify for the next stages of the tournament.

“For the fans back home, it’s a bitter feeling. A lot of them probably hate us right now but this is normal because they are fans, they are proud Nigerians, they want and they expect us to win every game, every tournament,” he said.

“Back home I will feel disappointed. The only thing I can say to them is to forgive us because the disappointment they feel I’m also feeling, my players are also feeling the same disappointment.”