FOOTBALL Association of Zambia (FAZ) general secretary Ponga Liwewe has urged Chipolopolo to remain focused and ignore media reports about Nigeria forfeiting their Russia 2018 World Cup qualifier match set for October 9 in Ndola.
It Nigerian counterpart has been reported to be broke by international and local media and is currently scouting for US$270,000 to charter a plane from Abuja to Ndola for the match.
Speaking to Lusaka based journalists on Thursday, Liwewe said the team should not be distracted by such reports.
“We are concentrating on our preparations; we are not worried about what’s going on with Nigeria. Let the players stay focused and let Nigeria handle their own problems,” said Liwewe.
Meanwhile, the football association in Nigeria has insisted that the report was the concoction of an idle mind and challenged the purveyors of the falsehood to name their source.
On Thursday, the NFF assured Nigerians that it had concluded arrangements on getting players and officials of the Super Eagles to Abuja for a training camp starting on Sunday, 2nd October, getting the team to and from Zambia and getting the players back to their various Clubs after the national assignment.
The body called for the support and prayers of Nigerians at this time, and urged that the players be allowed to focus on the big task of qualifying the nation to the 2018 FIFA World Cup, without so much negative stories and insinuations.
The NFF noted that over the past few months, some persons have made it their business to fabricate unhealthy stories about the NFF and Nigerian football. It called on all stakeholders to disregard, henceforth, any report about the NFF that did not emanate from the NFF Communications Department.
While admitting financial challenges as a result of the current state of the economy, the NFF expressed solid faith that matters would never get to the point of Nigeria being unable to get its National Team to the venue of a competitive match or championship.
It Nigerian counterpart has been reported to be broke by international and local media and is currently scouting for US$270,000 to charter a plane from Abuja to Ndola for the match.
Speaking to Lusaka based journalists on Thursday, Liwewe said the team should not be distracted by such reports.
“We are concentrating on our preparations; we are not worried about what’s going on with Nigeria. Let the players stay focused and let Nigeria handle their own problems,” said Liwewe.
Meanwhile, the football association in Nigeria has insisted that the report was the concoction of an idle mind and challenged the purveyors of the falsehood to name their source.
On Thursday, the NFF assured Nigerians that it had concluded arrangements on getting players and officials of the Super Eagles to Abuja for a training camp starting on Sunday, 2nd October, getting the team to and from Zambia and getting the players back to their various Clubs after the national assignment.
The body called for the support and prayers of Nigerians at this time, and urged that the players be allowed to focus on the big task of qualifying the nation to the 2018 FIFA World Cup, without so much negative stories and insinuations.
The NFF noted that over the past few months, some persons have made it their business to fabricate unhealthy stories about the NFF and Nigerian football. It called on all stakeholders to disregard, henceforth, any report about the NFF that did not emanate from the NFF Communications Department.
While admitting financial challenges as a result of the current state of the economy, the NFF expressed solid faith that matters would never get to the point of Nigeria being unable to get its National Team to the venue of a competitive match or championship.
