NFF apologises to Nigerians

The Nigeria Football Federation has apologised to Nigerians for the Super Eagles’ dismal performance at the World Cup.

The NFF President, Sani Lulu, said on Wednesday that the body was disappointed that the team could not progress beyond the group stage of the tournament.

He said, “It is sad because we all worked hard through the qualifying phase and the period of preparation for this championship. More importantly, President Goodluck Jonathan did everything to gear up the team for the competition, including visiting the players twice in three weeks, and giving them kind words and financial pledges.

“We have to come to terms with this early ouster, despite our hopes, our dreams and our desires. But we must acknowledge that the boys went down fighting. We apologise for this early exit from Africa‘s first FIFA World Cup.

“We have learnt very painful lessons and we must prepare ourselves for the collective task of rebuilding our football.

“The Federal Government gave the NFF and the team the needed support. But the expected progress did not happen and we just have to look forward. Looking forward means sitting down and thinking hard and taking some critical decisions in the days and weeks to come. Despite what has happened, we are happy that our country competed well and our players gave their all as sportsmen, with courage and ambition.”