Tough pool does not bother us

Nigeria’s senior team stalwarts have refused
to be worried about being housed in the
African 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification

series’ so –called group of death.
Reactions have been sharp, immediate and
interesting, from NFF President Amaju
Pinnick’s “now we must quickly sort out the
issue of Head Coach and his assistants and
put every other thing in place in good time,”
to former Eagles’ captain and member of
the NFF Technical Committee Garba
Lawal’s “I would rather lose to Algeria than
lose to Chad.”
Now, the players themselves have come out
to express confidence that the Super Eagles
can earn a third straight FIFA World Cup
ticket despite the challenge of Algeria,
Zambia and Cameroon.
Interim Head Coach, Salisu Yusuf
Without any doubt, this is a tough draw but
with commitment, determination and
motivation, the Super Eagles will scale these
hurdles and qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
Ogenyi Onazi
This is not a bad draw. I believe the Super
Eagles are equal to the task.
All we need to do now is to start planning
from this very moment. We have to get our
coach in place and give him, whether white
or black, a very conducive environment to
work. I am confident that by the grace of
God we will qualify. We will give our 100% in
every game and try to win whether home or
away. Every match must be taken as a
matter of life and death.
Leon Balogun
Far from easy, but it’s the hard road that
leads to success. Let’s take this opportunity
and earn our spot.
William Troost Ekong
I think it’s a tough draw, but I never
imagined we were going to get any easy
opponents on the way to 2018 World Cup. I
believe that we can do it. If we can put
everything in place structurally for all
members of staff and players to focus on
just the games, together with the support of
our nation we will be successful.
Elderson Echiejile
It is not an easy group, I must say, but we
have all what it takes to finish top of that
group and I believe we can. We have to
start preparing NOW (put everything in
proper place). It is never too early to start
preparing for such matches. We are the
Super Eagles.
Brown Ideye
At this stage of football, tough groups like
the type we have found ourselves are to be
expected. To get to the World Cup, we
cannot cut corners or relax or take things
for granted. The World Cup is the biggest
football stage where you meet the best of
the best, so getting there will be tough.
Now, we have to be prepared to work hard.
If we work hard together as a team we will
win matches and if we win our games we
will qualify. The media have to be involved
in this as well. They (media) have a huge
role to play in motivating and psyching our
team to do well. Everything is in our hands,
we must plan well and ensure our house is
in order. I believe we will qualify.