Former Super Eagles captain, Sunday Oliseh, has heaped praise on Cape Verde after the island nation sealed qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Cape Verde made history on Monday by becoming the second-smallest country ever to reach the global showpiece, following a 3-0 triumph over Eswatini in Praia.
The victory saw them top their qualifying group, earning a spot at the World Cup ahead of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.
Dailon Livramento broke the deadlock early in the second half, pouncing on a loose ball inside the box.
Willy Semedo soon doubled the lead with a crisp volley, while veteran defender Stopira completed the rout with a stoppage-time strike, sending the 15,000-capacity National Stadium into wild celebration.
Reacting to the milestone, Oliseh, who represented Nigeria at the 1994 and 1998 editions of the tournament, lauded the Blue Sharks’ remarkable achievement.
He wrote on his X handle, “This is simply Remarkable. Cape Verde is a nation with a 525,000 population! Undisputably the success story of modern national team football worldwide.”
Only Iceland, with a smaller population, has ever qualified for the World Cup, having featured at the 2018 edition in Russia.
Cape Verde’s journey was sealed after last month’s 1-0 win over Cameroon in Praia, which put them in firm control of Group D.
They narrowly missed clinching qualification in their previous game, a 3-3 draw with Libya, where they fought back from two goals down but had a late winner ruled out for offside.
On Monday, however, they left no doubts, overcoming Eswatini to become the sixth African nation to confirm a place at next year’s World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Super Eagles will take to the pitch later today (Tuesday) against Group C leaders Benin Republic in Uyo.
A win for Nigeria, combined with South Africa’s failure to beat Rwanda, would see the three-time African champions secure qualification.
