BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Even as the commencement of the qualifying series for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations is barely eight weeks away, the Nigerian national team is without a coach and a technical crew.

The technical crew has been dissolved following Nigeria’s inability to qualify for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. In the days that followed, there were speculations in many on-line platforms on possible appointment of some coaches and backroom staffs.

Some of the speculations linked the Nigerian sports ministry  to the shortlisting of possible candidates.

But according to a release by one of the Nigerian sports ministers’ spokespersons, Toyin Ibitoye who at a time was also the media officer of the national team, the reports were false.

According to him, “these reports are false and so far from the truth. The minister has not ordered or forced any coach on the NFF.”

He therefore urged the discerning members of the public, football loving persons to discountenance those stories for “what they are…the figment of the imagination of the writers.”

The qualifying series for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire are due to resume in June with the six winners of the preliminary competition joining the 48 others to each play six group matches where 24 finalists will emerge.

Although the draw for the group stage has not been done, Sports Village Square reliably gathered that the international window of June will be used for four of the six group matches by each team.

The implication is that the Super Eagles will have four qualifying matches in June against yet to be determined opponents.

Meanwhile, according to the yardstick for the draw, Nigeria along with the top 11 ranked team will be seeded in Pot 1.

The other teams in the pot are the five African flagbearers at Qatar 2022 as well as Algeria, Egypt, Mali, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and DR Congo.