Midfielder for both Leicester and the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Wilfred Ndidi, has provided insight into the team’s mentality and the difficulties facing new head coach George Finidi as the Super Eagles prepare for important 2026 World Cup qualifying matches in June.
The importance of the forthcoming games was acknowledged by Ndidi in a Monday interview with Arise TV, saying, “Yeah, they (the games) are really important because we know where we stand at the moment.” To be honest, we should be honest with ourselves—this is not a favorable position”.
He emphasized that the team had to treat every opponent seriously and said, “There are no small countries or small teams; as long as you’re in that group, you want to qualify.”
Considering the team’s current position in the qualifiers, the Leicester City star highlighted the pressure on them.
“Where we are at the moment gives us more pressure, because these games are must-win games. I’m not saying we will win the game but I’m saying they are must-win games because we don’t know what’s going to happen it all bores down to us as a team because we know what is at hand and then we know we have to get as much as we can in these two games just to go up there,” Ndidi said.
Focusing on George Finidi, the new head coach, who was previously manager Jose Peseiro’s assistant, Ndidi acknowledged the difficulty of the task facing the former international.
“I would say congratulations to him because uh he’s been part of the team for months now and I think him coming into that role as a manager, I think it is a big one for him.”
Ndidi described the difficulties Finidi encountered when the squad played friendly matches in Morocco versus Ghana and Mali, where he was expected to manage several tasks without sufficient assistance.
Ndidi said, “But you know when we played in the friendly game in Morocco against Ghana and Mali, I felt bad for him because he was alone and uh there was no assistant no one to help him. He was basically conducting the training, doing the tactics, even doing games and conducting the warm-up and I think you know we as a group and then seeing him going through all this and still confident with the team it is amazing because with little help from other people coming in I think he’s going to do well.”
After South Africa and Rwanda, Nigeria is presently ranked third in Group C of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. Nigeria has participated in two games and has drawn both of them.
Finidi wasted little time in outlining his immediate responsibilities, which include two vital 2026 World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and Benin early next month. Finidi made his new job public to the media in Abuja on May 13.
Benin on June 10 and South Africa on June 7 are Nigeria’s upcoming matches.
Speaking to reporters on his immediate task, Finidi said, “Nigeria comes first, that’s what I expect from every player I invite. You have to be playing in your club, and you must commit.
“The first targets are to qualify for the World Cup and AFCON (Africa Cup of Nations), and a win over South Africa will set the tone.”
