Super Eagles goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali has rated the team's chances of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup ahead of the impending three-point deduction for South Africa.

South Africa fielded the ineligible Teboho Mokoena in their 2-0 win over Lesotho on matchday five of the qualifier, despite receiving yellow cards on matchday one and four.

According to Score Nigeria, a top official has confirmed that FIFA will slap Group C leaders Bafana Bafana with a three-point deduction as a penalty for the major gaffe.

The 2010 World Cup hosts are too of Group C with 13 points, which will reduce to 10 when their penalty takes effect, and further open the race to qualify in the group.

Nigerian national team goalkeeper Nwabali has shared his thoughts about the team's current state in the qualifying series during an interview with Brila FM.

The Chippa United goalkeeper urges the fans to marry their expectations with reality, as the team cannot win every match just because they are Nigeria.

“It is football. Just because we are Nigeria doesn’t mean we’re guaranteed to win every game,” he said.

The South Africa-based goalkeeper believes the Eagles still have a lot of chances to qualify for the tournament and assured the fans that the team will push in the remaining game.

"You can see we still have a lot of chances to qualify, despite where we are on the table. We’re going to push in our next game, take it one game at a time, and we’ll see how our next four games go,” he concluded.

The Super Eagles have played six games during the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier, which began in the international window of November 2023 and have picked up only seven points.

Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro, who led the team to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations final, kicked off the campaign with two draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

Finidi George oversaw four games in charge of the Super Eagles, two of which came in the qualifiers. He drew 1-1 against South Africa and lost 2-1 to Benin Republic, ultimately costing him his job.

Eric Chelle instilled hope in Nigerians with a 2-0 away win against Rwanda, but it came crashing down after a late equaliser meant Nigeria played a 1-1 draw against Zimbabwe in Uyo.

The Eagles will play a home game against Rwanda in September before travelling to face South Africa in a must-win game four days later.

Legit.ng analysed how Nigeria could qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with South Africa expected to receive a three-point deduction before the next break.

The points deduction will boost the Eagles' chances, but it is not a straightforward path as the team still needs to win their remaining four matches to qualify.

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Source: Legit.ng