Nigeria, Jan. 27 -- Former Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) president Amaju Pinnick has broken his silence on the Super Eagles' failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, insisting that the setback would not have occurred if he had remained in office for a third term.

Mr Pinnick, 55, led the NFF from October 2014 to October 2022, a period that delivered mixed fortunes for Nigeria on the global stage. During Mr Pinnick's administration, the Super Eagles qualified for the 2018 World Cup in Russia under Gernot Rohr but missed out on Qatar 2022, losing out to Ghana on away goals in a dramatic playoff in Abuja.

Now, with Nigeria set to miss consecutive World Cups for the first time since 1994, the former CAF Vice President believes the...