Nigeria may miss U-20 Women’s World Cup due to FIFA Suspension | Falconets remain Optimistic

ABUJA (NAN) ― The U-20 National female team Falconets have continued preparations for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in spite of FIFA’s the suspension of the Nigeria Football Association (NFA).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that with today (Tuesday) being the deadline given for the sacked NFA Board members to be reinstated, the Falconets still played a friendly match.

NAN recalls that the Emergency Committee of the world football governing body had on July 9 suspended NFA due to what it called government interference.

With the suspension, no team from Nigeria of any sort (including clubs) can have any international sporting contact.

Also, the NFA will not be represented in any regional, continental or international competitions, including at club level or in friendly matches.

FIFA, however, gave July 15 as the deadline for the government to reinstate the sacked board or the Falconets would not participate in the forthcoming FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

The Women’s World Cup is scheduled to hold in Canada from Aug. 5 to Aug. 24.

In the friendly match, played at the FIFA Goal Project Pitch of the National Stadium, Abuja, the Peter Dedevbo-tutored side, beat State House Queens 3-0.

Dedevbo, however, told NAN after the match that the friendly match was organised to keep the players in shape hoping to still participate at the World Cup.

“Although, we have not heard anything so far, we just played the match to keep the players in shape hoping that we will still go for the World Cup.

“And we are hoping to play another friendly match either on Thursday or Friday,’’ Dedevbo said.

He, however, noted that he was not bothered about the score line of the match, but about the team’s cohesion and players’ understanding.

“I am not bothered about the score line but the teams’ cohesion and the players’ understanding of themselves.

“And with what I have seen this evening, they have understood themselves well and I rate them 75 per cent for their performance,’’ Dedevbo said.

NAN recalls that a High Court on July 2 in Jos, granted an order of interlocutory injunction restraining some NFA members from running Nigeria’s football affairs forthwith.

The members, included the NFA Chairman, Aminu Maigari, the association’s board members, and the NFA Congress.

Danagogo, acting on the court’s directive on July 3 appointed, Lawrence Katken, the most senior civil servant in the NFA, as the Acting Secretary-General, pending the determination of the suit.

However, Katken called for an Extraordinary Congress of the NFA on July 5 in Abuja, which eventually dissolved the Maigari-led board for abuse of the football statutes.