The Confederation of African Football will announce its decision on Wednesday regarding the “botched AFCON qualifying Group D” match between Libya and Nigeria, which was supposed to take place at “Benina Martyrs Stadium” on October 15.
According to “Libya Al-Ahrar Channel,” CAF will reveal the final decision concerning the players’ ordeal during the first leg in Nigeria, which ended 1-0 in favor of the “Super Eagles,” and the reverse fixture that would have taken place at Libya’s first all-seater stadium, with a capacity of 10,550.
The outlet also mentioned that the “Libyan Football Federation” submitted all necessary documents, with a specialized lawyer assigned to oversee the Libyan file with CAF.
A day after the canceled match, CAF removed the fixture from its calendar and announced the cancellation just hours before kick-off, referring the matter to the “Disciplinary Committee” for further consideration.
In a statement released on Monday, the “Libyan Football Federation” criticized the actions taken by the Nigerian team for refusing to play against Libya and confirmed its intent to take all legal steps to safeguard the interests of their national team.
Nigeria arrived for the match on October 14, but their flight was redirected to “Al Abraq International Airport,” which is around three hours by road from “Benghazi,” the match venue. The Libyan authorities held the Nigerian team for 17 hours, causing them trauma before they eventually returned home.
Nigeria filed a complaint with CAF, recounting their experience. Meanwhile, the “Libyan Federation” claimed that the Nigerian team was uncooperative during both the first and second legs, stating their own experience in Nigeria was far worse compared to what they went through during the first leg.
CAF described the situation involving the Nigerian team in Libya as “extremely dangerous.” CAF further stated that it had been in contact with both the “Libyan” and “Nigerian authorities” after the Nigerian team was subjected to troubling conditions at the airport for several hours.
The matter has been referred to the “Disciplinary Committee” to investigate and take appropriate measures against those who breached regulations.
