“A real waste,” Gernot Rohr laments Nigeria’s absence from the 2026 World Cup.

The former head coach of the Super Eagles, Gernot Rohr, expressed his disappointment after Nigeria’s failure in the race for the 2026 World Cup, stating that the three-time African champions suffered from a botched start to the campaign. For the second consecutive edition, Nigeria will not be present on the world stage, having already missed the 2022 World Cup. Their last participation was in the 2018 edition in Russia.

Despite the expansion of the tournament and the presence of ten African representatives, the Super Eagles failed to secure their ticket. Éric Chelle’s men finished in second place in their qualifying group, behind South Africa, in a group that also included Benin, Rwanda, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe. Forced to go through the playoffs, Nigeria then saw their journey come to an end against the DR Congo, blowing their last hopes of qualification.

Asked by Footy Africa, Rohr pointed out the difficulties faced right from the start of the qualifiers. “I also think about the fact that Nigeria hasn’t participated in a World Cup since 2018,” said the Franco-German coach. According to him, the main issue was not a lack of talent, but the absence of collective cohesion in the early matches. “Even though they had players of high individual quality, they simply didn’t play as a team at the start of the qualifiers and dropped too many points,” he analyzed.

The former head of the Super Eagles did not hide his frustration at seeing several African stars miss the world event. “It’s really a pity that major players like Victor Osimhen, Samuel Chukwueze, and Ademola Lookman are not here. For me, it’s a real waste,” he concluded. Nigeria’s absence is one of the main surprises of this African qualifying phase, given the selection’s wealth of talent playing at the highest European levels.