Nigeria’s Super Eagles suffered a painful defeat to DR Congo in the final of the CAF World Cup playoffs on Sunday….
The Libyan Football Federation have congratulated DR Congo, following their victory over the Super Eagles in the final of the CAF World Cup playoffs on Sunday, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Leopards of DR Congo claimed a tough win over Nigeria at the Prince Moulay Hassan Stadium on Sunday to seal their ticket to the intercontinental World Cup playoffs.
DR Congo dominated most of the fixture, but a sturdy Nigerian defence managed to drag the game into penalty shootouts, which the Leopards won eventually.
DR Congo have not qualified for the Mundial since 1972, so it will be a big deal for them if they manage to book a ticket to the 2026 edition.
Following their win over, the Libyan Football Federation sent them a congratulatory message via X on Monday.
“Congratulations to the DR Congo Football Federation for the well deserved win (over Nigeria),” The Libyan Federation wrote.
“Congratulations to the Democratic Republic of the Congo national team for their well-deserved qualification to the final playoffs for the 202y World Cup.”
While this is a nice gesture from the Libyan Federation, there might be more to the post than meets the eye.
Flashback: Recent Bad Blood Between Nigeria and Libya
The Super Eagles of Nigeria were in the same group with Libya in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. They were supposed to play two games, but they played just one.
Nigeria won the first one at home last October, but the second one which was supposed to be played in Libya did not take place due to their severe antics.
Super Eagles of Nigeria Hostage in Libya – FULL 20 Hours VLOG Via Ola Aina (Mr LULU) on snap
1/2 pic.twitter.com/0XJv000AON
— Dr. Victor Ademola (@AdemolaVictorTv) October 14, 2024
They kept the Super Eagles players and staff in an abandoned airport for almost a day without anyone to attend to them. The entourage ultimately had to ditch the game.
It didn’t take long for CAF’s hammer to fall on them, as they were deemed to have forfeited the game. As such, they lost three points and three goals for the game. They were also fined.
That cost Libya, as they eventually failed to qualify for the 2025 AFCON.
So, their nice gesture towards DR Congo could just be a way of spiting the Super Eagles. Moreover, DR Congo and Nigeria are not in the same part of Africa, neither are they close.
It will be interesting to see if they congratulate DR Congo if they qualify for the 2026 World Cup at the playoffs next year.