Sports FIFA: Nigeria Forfeits WC Qualifying Points For Fielding Ineligible Player

[LequteMan]

World football body FIFA has fined the Nigeria Football Federation 6,000 Swiss Francs (approximately N2,175,660.00) for fielding an ineligible player in their last qualification game for the Russia 2018 World Cup.

Nigeria fielded Shehu Abdullahi for the game and according to FIFA, the three-time African champions violated article 8 of the Regulations of the 2018 World Cup Russia and article 55 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code for featuring the Anorthosis Famagusta defender, who was ineligible for the encounter on 10 November 2017.

According to a statement on the official website of FIFA, Shehu failed to serve the automatic one-match suspension imposed on him as a result of receiving a caution in two separate matches of the same competition.

Nigeria will forfeit the point gained from the encounter with three points and three goals awarded in favour of Algeria.

However, this sanction bears no impact on the final result of the preliminary competition for the FIFA World Cup since Nigeria had already qualified (and Algeria eliminated) before the match was played.

 

[Wakanda]

NFF and Rohr have started.......how do you forget a player has two yellow cards and field him? who are we to blame?

 

[LequteMan]

The player was fielded based on orders from "oga at the top"

 

[mrsam]

The player was fielded based on orders from "oga at the top"

If this is true, then it is a shame. The official needs to be sacked

 

[Samuel Arua]

Why on earth did they field him without allowing him serve his suspension term. Do they think it is Nigeria politics that can be manipulated and the constitution turned blur against being legible? See the cost now. They will now use money meant for something else to pay the fine. My opinion is that the officials should pay the fine with their money.

 

[LequteMan]

Why on earth did they field him without allowing him serve his suspension term. Do they think it is Nigeria politics that can be manipulated and the constitution turned blur against being legible? See the cost now. They will now use money meant for something else to pay the fine. My opinion is that the officials should pay the fine with their money.

Exactly. Why should the whole county suffer for the greediness of a select few?