President Muhammadu Buhari, Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Cross River governor, Donald Duke, have congratulated the Super Eagles over their 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualification.
The Super Eagles played a 1-1 draw with South Africa in their last Group E match at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.
The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, in a statement in Abuja, said Buhari joined millions of football-loving Nigerians in commending the team for their spirited and disciplined performance against the Bafana Bafana.
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Atiku and Duke took to twitter to congratulate the Eagles.
Tweeting on his handle @atiku, the PDP Presidential candidate said: “Congratulations NGSuperEagles on qualifying for the 2019 AFCON. We will be here to cheer you to victory in the coming tournament.’’
Duke on his twitter handle @donald_duke wrote: “Congratulations to the SuperEagles on their qualification for AFCON 2019! You’ve done the nation proud!”
In the statement by his aide, Buhari noted that the victory had earned the Eagles qualification with the final match against Seychelles a mere formality.
“Having keenly followed the senior national football team’s progress in the qualifying stages, President Buhari is enthused by their confidence, sense of patriotism and professionalism, and commends these attributes to other Nigerians.’’
The president also lauded the coaching crew, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the Supporters Club, especially Nigerians residing in South Africa who turned out in great numbers to cheer the players, for a job well-done and assured them of the unflinching support of the Federal Government going forward.
Nigeria tops the group with 10 points ahead of South Africa with nine points with Libya and Seychelles on seven and one point respectively.
Seychelles have one match left in the group.