Former Nigeria international Ifeanyi Udeze says he cannot understand how the Golden Eaglets lost 2-1 to Niger Republic in their opening Group B match at the 2026 WAFU B U-17 Championship.
Niger took the lead in the 20th minute when Abdoul Razaq Zada found the net. Abdoul Rakilou then doubled their advantage with four minutes remaining, leaving Nigeria facing defeat.
The Golden Eaglets pulled a goal back in stoppage time through Mubarak Fasiu, but the late effort was not enough to prevent Niger from securing all three points.
The victory took Niger Republic through to the semi-finals, with four points from their two matches. They had drawn 1-1 with Cote d’Ivoire in their opening fixture.
Udeze, who represented Nigeria at international level, said the result was difficult to explain given the amount of footballing talent in the country.
“I still can’t process it, I can’t believe the Golden Eaglets lost to a team like Niger Republic,” Udeze said on BRILA FM.
“We have talents all over the place, if you are talking about talents they are everywhere in the country, so I find it hard to understand that we lost to Niger Republic.”
Nigeria must now defeat Cote d’Ivoire in their second group match to keep alive their hopes of reaching the last four.