‘This situation differs’ - CAF insider crushes Super Eagles' hope of getting a ticket to the World Cup

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) lodged a formal complaint with FIFA following a painful penalty shootout defeat that ended their World Cup aspirations. 

The petition specifically challenges the eligibility of several DRC players, including former Manchester United defenders Axel Tuanzebe and Aaron Wan-Bissaka. 

The NFF's argument hinges on the DRC's national legislation, which reportedly prohibits dual citizenship with European nations.

A source within CAF has indicated that FIFA's regulations prioritise official documentation over domestic nationality laws, suggesting the complaint may not hold up.

"Nigeria have filed an official complaint against Congo because of the presence of players like Wan-Bissaka and Tuanzebe who obtained Congolese nationality, even though Congolese law prohibits combining its nationality with a European nationality at the same time," the CAF source explained to Filgoal. 

"FIFA requires that a passport be issued for the nationality in order to change nationality, so as long as the players have obtained passports, there is no problem."

The source also noted that even if an administrative breach were confirmed, it would probably not lead to an alteration of the match results.

"If violations are proven, they will not affect the results of the World Cup qualifiers," the source continued. 

"This situation differs from the Equatorial Guinea case involving Emilio Nsue, where sanctions were imposed because the violation occurred before the qualifiers began."

"In the current case, changing results would require restarting the qualification process, which is not under consideration," the source added. "The most probable outcome would be a financial penalty or a formal warning for future compliance."

Pending FIFA's final decision, the DRC is set to advance to the inter-confederation playoffs, where they will face the winner of the match between New Caledonia and Jamaica for a place at the World Cup.