CAF President Patrice Motsepe made strong statements regarding the incidents that led to the cancellation of the Nigeria-Libya match.
The Nigerian national team was redirected to a different airport in Libya before the match and was stranded there for over 13 hours. Motsepe stated that he would take full responsibility for the situation:
“When there was this problem of the Nigerian national team in Libya, I will not comment on that because there is a proper investigation [going on], but I want to emphasise the principle we will not tolerate. Because this is something that has been going on for quite some time. Forget about the Nigeria-Libya situation because it has been properly investigated, and appropriate action will be taken.
“I have heard too many stories of a football club or a national team going to a country. You spend hours at the airport, and they ask you about documents that are not meant to be accessed. And apparently, during Covid, they would look at the 10 best players from your team and say those players have Covid. These are examples of a lack of sportsmanship that has existed, and we have not taken effective action.”
CAF officials had confirmed that they contacted both regional sports authorities in Libya and Nigeria after the incident. CAF has referred the matter to the disciplinary board and taken necessary steps.
The match between the two teams has been postponed due to the tension that arose, and the disciplinary board’s decision is expected to be announced soon.
