THE Nigerian team have arrived safely in Kumasi for the first leg of the Qatar 2022 World Cup playoffs against Ghana.
The first leg of the tie is billed for Friday in Kumasi, while the second leg will be held in Abuja next Tuesday.
The Super Eagles contingent, comprising players, team officials, Nigeria Football Federation officials and cooks, left Abuja via a chartered Air Peace aircraft on Thursday morning and touched down at the Kumasi airport before noon.
The Nigerians were made to go through some inconveniences while disembarking, as video clips showed them having to jump several inches from the plane’s doorway to reach the first step of the clearly inadequate ramp as they got off the plane.
The players had to be extra careful in order to avoid hurting their ankles or knees while landing on the ramp, which was provided by Kumasi airport authorities.
The Super Eagles squad in Kumasi is made up of 25 players, including Enyimba goalkeeper, John Noble who replaced the ill Maduka Okoye, and Ademola Lookman, who only recently completed his international switch from England to Nigeria.
Meanwhile, reports from Ghana on Thursday said equipment for the Viedo Assistant Referee has been installed at the Baba Yara Stadium, the venue of Friday’s first leg.
This will be the first time the VAR technology will be used in Ghana and it has been brought in to ensure fairness in the playoffs.
Without VAR, Ghana defeated South Africa with a controversial penalty in the earlier rounds to qualify for the playoffs.
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