FCT FA Chairman Adam Mouktar Mohammed has commended the Super Eagles even though they failed to win a fourth AFCON title in the championship game against hosts Cote d’Ivoire.
Mouktar Mohammed, who was in Abidjan for the continental competition, also praised Cote d’Ivoire for staging a befitting tournament for African football.
The Full Interview –
The 2023 AFCON has come and gone. What can you say about this competition?
ADAM MOUKTAR MOHAMMED: First of all, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Côte d’Ivoire, host country of the competition, for its welcome, its hospitality and its perfect organization of the AFCON, which made us happy during this competition which saw a great success. I also extend my congratulations to Côte d’Ivoire for winning the tournament. I can safely say that this is the best AFCON I have attended. All the facilities were made for us and I can assure you that everything went well.
What did you particularly remember or what particularly struck you during your stay?
AMM: The spirit of hospitality of this country. These were great moments for everyone who visited this country. It was the unity of Africa through the game that reached a truly high level. I think that’s what I remember as essential and special.
What do you think of the Côte d’Ivoire champions of Africa again?
Football is a great instrument of unity of nations, which brings peace and joy to people. I think the Ivorian players played with heart, a lot of passion and came from far away to bring joy to their country. And it’s something special for them and special in West Africa.
Are you sad for your country Nigeria which narrowly missed the trophy?
Yes of course. Especially since Nigeria had a good competition. But could not achieve the goal of winning the trophy. We showed good things just like Cote d’Ivoire. Moreover, it was the two teams from the same group who found themselves in the final. In football, you win or you lose but the main thing is to be able to be in that spirit. All my encouragement to our team who did a good job despite losing the final. I think I have good memories of Cote d’Ivoire.
What do you think of the disappointment of great nations like Senegal, Morocco, Algeria, Cameroon…?
You know, that’s the beauty of football. It’s about fighting and not taking into account your FIFA or CAF ranking, your standing but what you are doing at the precise moment of the competition. This means that football is special for everyone. It continues to grow in Africa by producing more and more talents who will play across the world.
What do you think of the current level of African football?
This is fantastic and has begun this development through refereeing, the game, the stadiums, the organisation… African football has great players who produce a good show and this means that it is greatly respected throughout the world. We saw the organisation of Côte d’Ivoire during the opening and closing ceremonies of the AFCON. The organisation was good and perfect. There was also the quality of the game, we had a lot of goals. Countries like Mauritania, Cape Verde and others pleasantly surprised with some great football.
What are your assessment of non-sporting sports infrastructures?
It’s simply fantastic. I admit that I was amazed by the quality of the roads, the accommodation conditions, the stadiums and the training grounds which allowed the teams to be able to play. Côte d’Ivoire made Africa proud.
In 2025, Morocco will host the AFCON. Do you think Nigeria will have a big say of the tournament again?
Of course yes and we will already prepare to face the playoffs. But in football nothing is won or guaranteed in advance, you have to fight on the pitch to win and guarantee your place. So we will get back to work, look for and recruit new players and fight to go to Morocco. Morocco will also want to win as the organising country and will give them the chance to achieve their objective.
Since Nigeria last won the AFCON in 2013 in South Africa, they have not reached such heights again. What do you think is the problem?
Today, there is a leveling of values and all the teams have raised the level of their game. You saw it at this AFCON that all the teams fought, they have talent and no one wanted to let themselves to be dominated . There are new talents. We have Victor Osimhen voted CAF African Player of the Year and who remains an excellent player for Nigeria. A good team assumes players in good shape at the moment, no injuries, good preparation, good preparation, a good coach…In fact, taking into account a certain number of parameters. Hopefully, we can also qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
For several years, Nigerian youth football, which had obtained very good results internationally, has struggled to take off. What’s the problem?
Today you have big training centers, big football academies all over Africa. We see it in Morocco, Senegal, Ghana, Mali… which train young talents and where millions or billions of Francs are injected. Today football has become scientific, technical, tactical, has new philosophies of play…so the level has evolved considerably and it is these young people from these countries who compete and who also win against Nigeria, who it must be said, have not been left out of this development. The situation has changed.
Speaking of football academies, has your own produced players currently playing in the Super Eagles?
Yes, we have trained many young people who play at almost all levels in championships in Europe and in the various national youth teams of Nigeria. In the Super Eagles, we have Alhassan Yusuf who comes directly from our academy. We continue to train players, a way for us to contribute to the development and promotion of football in Nigeria
After the 2023 AFCON, what is your message to Africa?
I would like to thank Africa for the spirit of unity displayed during this edition where we saw the great efforts made around the teams to encourage young people to produce a spectacle. I believe that we must continue this momentum of solidarity. Africa must remain united and united to face the challenges.
Interview conducted by Adou Mel, Afrikipresse.fr
