FIFA fines Nigeria for fielding ineligible player in 2018 World Cup qualifier, deducts points

Nigeria loses 3 points in group stage while Algeria gets 5 points following FIFA's sanction 


FIFA has fined the Nigeria Football Federation 6,000 Swiss Francs (about N2,177,280) for fielding an ineligible player in a Russia 2018 World Cup qualifying match.

The disciplinary committee of the body in a statement on Tuesday said the three-time African champions fielded Shehu Abdullahi who was ineligible for the qualifier against Algeria on November 10, 2017.

The committee awarded 3-0 in favour of Algeria, with the NFF also receiving a fine of CHF 6,000 (about $6,045.30).

The statement reads, “The sanction relates to the player Abdullahi Shehu failing to serve the automatic one-match suspension imposed on him as a result of receiving a caution in two separate matches of the same competition.

“This sanction bears no impact on the final result of the preliminary competition for the FIFA World Cup since Nigeria had already qualified (and Algeria eliminated) before the match took place.”

Due to the sanction, Nigeria’s points in the group stage dropped from 14 to 11, while Algeria gets five points.