Nigeria accuses DR Congo of witchcraft after their elimination in Morocco

Eric Chelle exploded with anger after Chancel Mbemba scored the decisive penalty to send the Democratic Republic of Congo to the intercontinental playoffs scheduled for March, thus unexpectedly eliminating Nigeria. A few minutes earlier, he was seen trying to confront a member of the DR Congo technical staff. He was prevented by a member of his own technical staff. But after the decisive penalty, Chelle started running towards the opposing bench, before his staff held him back again.

In a statement to the press, the Nigeria national team coach justified his anger: "During the entire penalty shootout, the Congo guy was doing voodoo. All the time, all the time. That’s why I was so angry at him. What did I see? I saw that..." He tries to describe what he saw the DR Congo staff member doing. He mimes with his hands and acts as if someone is spreading a liquid around him. "I don’t know if it was water, but that’s it...", he adds. Allegations denied by a DR Congo representative, according to The Athletic.

This defeat has shattered the dreams of Nigerians. Absent from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, they will not participate in the 2026 World Cup. They are thus deprived of two consecutive World Cups. While Nigeria (six appearances) regularly participates in the World Cup since their first qualification in 1994, only Cameroon, Morocco and Tunisia have represented Africa the most.