A section of Nigerians took to social media calling on the Nigeria Football Federation to tender an apology to former Super Eagles coach, Gernot Rohr, after the country failed to qualify for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Nigeria played a 1-1 draw with Ghana at the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja on Tuesday but couldn’t qualify for football’s biggest showpiece as they crashed out on the away goal rule following a goalless draw against their archrivals in Kumasi last Friday.

The Eagles put in a poor display in the second leg of the final play-off and had their hopes of playing at the Mundial dashed by their West African rivals.

Rohr, who was sacked by the NFF in December 2021 following an underwhelming performance by the Eagles, guided Nigeria to qualify from the group stage as they topped Group C with 13 points ahead of Cape Verde, who finished second with 11 points.

Immediately after Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar, some fans swarmed the social media calling for an apology to the Franco-German.

Osasu Obayiuwana wrote, “Nigerian football and Nigeria owe a big apology to Gernot Rohr. The @NGSuperEagles have reaped the bitter fruits of that unjust sacking by the NFF. Now, it is time for the governors of Nigerian football to face their day of reckoning.”

Another sports journalist, Ibukun Aluko, said, “We didn’t need to sack Gernot Rohr, that man was getting us into every competition easily, but Nigerians demanded for good football!!

If anything at all, I’m happy that Gernot Rohr has been Vindicated!”

“For real, we as a nation owe Gernot Rohr an apology. Eguavon destroyed everything,” Victor @Bolikass simply wrote on Twitter.

A Twitter user with the name, Timmy Leyin added, “I need the apology to be as loud as the disrespect. Gernot Rohr would never disappoint in such a crucial game.”

Mr Felix also joined in saying NFF owed Rohr an apology.

“Gernot Rohr would have done the needful. NFF and Nigerians disrespected him. He needs some apologies please because Eguavoen and Rohr no be mate,” he tweeted.

MAFID0N added, “Can the NFF really say that Gernot Rohr would’ve done a worse job than what Eguavoen just did at AFCON and the World Cup qualifiers? Can they really say that?”

Ikakke Ekanem questioned the NFF’s decision to retain Eguavoen after the AFCON.

“NFF stop playing politics with Nigerian football. The initial plan was Eguavoen to take Super Eagles to AFCON and Jose Peseiro to play the WC qualifiers.

“Why was Gernot Rohr sacked if an underperforming Eguavoen who couldn’t pass round of 16 at AFCON is allowed to play WC qualifiers?”

Angry Nigerian supporters stormed the pitch of the Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja, after the national team failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup.

The Super Eagles were banking on home advantage, following their 0-0 draw in Kumasi last Friday.

But it was the Black Stars who took the lead in the 10th minute of the game through Thomas Partey.

Partey’s speculative shot from distance was fumbled into the net by goalkeeper Francis Uzoho.

However, Nigeria levelled through William Troost-Ekong’s penalty, after VAR deemed that Ademola Lookman was fouled in the area.

The three-time African champions failed to find the back of the net again, as Ghana qualified on away goals.

Ugly scenes ensued after the final whistle as home fans proceeded to storm the pitch and smash up their own ground.

Ghanaian fans had to be moved onto the pitch after a number of them were reportedly attacked in the stands.

Nigeria’s Super Eagles have failed in their bold bid to qualify for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. They managed to hold Ghana 1-1 in Abuja, but it is the visitors that are through owing to the away-goal rule.

Ghana qualified on an away goal advantage.

Nigeria hosted arch-rivals Ghana in the second-leg of the 2022 World Cup playoff on Tuesday at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja.

Nigeria failed to win their match against Ghana in Abuja on Tuesday to be able to qualify for the World Cup which would have been the country’s fourth successive appearance at the global tournament.

Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey scored the goal that took Ghana to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar as they forced a 1-1 draw in Nigeria on Tuesday to win the African play-off on away goals.

Partey struck after 10 minutes in Abuja and although another Premier League star, William Troost-Ekong, levelled from a 22nd-minute penalty, Nigeria failed to score again. The first leg ended goalless.

The Black Stars of Ghana are back in the World Cup finals after qualifying in 2006, 2010 and 2014, but missing out four years ago.

To boost support for Super Eagles, civil servants in Abuja were given a half-day and free transport was arranged from the suburbs to ensure a capacity of 60,000 crowds cheered on Nigeria.

But the home team fell behind early on when Partey’s shot from outside the box slipped between the hands of goalkeeper Francis Uzoho and into the net.

It was the latest in a series of blunders by Nigerian goalkeepers with Maduka Okoyo blamed for the Tunisian goal that knocked his team out of the recent Africa Cup of Nations at the last-16 stage.

Troost-Ekong was the calmest person in the cauldron of noise midway through the opening half as he sent Ghana goalkeeper Jojo Wollacott the wrong way from the penalty spot to equalise.

Napoli forward Victor Osimhen had the ball in the net for Nigeria soon after, but it was ruled offside after a VAR check.

Nigeria applied constant second-half pressure, but could not break down a Ghana defence marshalled by Leicester City centre-back Daniel Amartey.

Ghana started the two-leg tie as underdogs after a dismal showing at the Cup of Nations in January, with a loss to minnows the Comoros condemning them to a humiliating first-round exit, AFP reports.

Though still Africa’s number one, Quadri Aruna has dropped the 14th spot in the latest ITTF ranking released yesterday by the world table tennis ruling body.

Buy Nigeria’s best-ranked female player in the world, Edem Offiong gained valuable points for her participation in the just concluded WTT Singapore Smash to rise to 98 from 99th spot.

For finishing in the round of 32 of the Men’s Singles after a closed 3-1 lost to Olympic and World Champion Ma Long of China, Aruna amassed some ranking points but this did not prevent him from being displaced by Slovenia’s Darko Jorgic, China’s Wang Chuqin, and Germany’s Patrick Franziska.

Ranked 11th before the latest rating, the Nigerian still maintained his status as best rated African in the world while Egypt’s Omar Assar also dropped to 26 from 27 in the ranking.

Egypt’s Dina Meshref also held on to the top status in Africa despite dropping to 38 from 37 in the world ranking.

With the conclusion of the season opener, Singapore Smash 2022 at the weekend, China’s Fan Zhendong tightened his clutch on the world number No.1 spot while his compatriot Chen Meng reclaimed the top berth from Sun Yingsha following her victory in the women’s singles at the inaugural event

Meanwhile, European players such as Slovenia’s Jorgic and Austria’s Sofia Polcanova record their career-best ranking after the big show in Singapore.

The in-form Zhendong headed into the Singapore Smash with the men’s singles crowns from the World Table Tennis Championships and WTT Cup Finals Singapore 2021 and continued his winning ways clinching the title for the men’s doubles event at Singapore Smash with teammate Wang Chuqin.

The 25-year-old was impressive with his fight back in the tightly-contested men’s singles final. His success in Singapore sees his lead in the ranking stretch to 3794 points ahead of compatriot and familiar rival, Ma Long.

Cameroon sealed the fifth and final African World Cup 2022 qualification slot in dramatic style on Tuesday night, defeating Algeria 2-1 after extra time at the Mustapha Tchaker Stadium in Blida to take the tie on away goals.

The Indomitable Lions join Ghana, Senegal, Morocco and Tunisia as CAF representatives at Qatar 2022 thanks to an injury-time strike at the end of 120 minutes from Karl Toko Ekambi which stunned the home crowd and left the Desert Foxes in tears.

Algeria started strongly and had a first clear chance on 13 minutes, when a ball stolen in midfield was fed quickly to Riyad Mahrez, who cut inside from the right and curled a shot high and wide.

Four minutes later they stung the palms of Andre Onana for the first time, with defender Djamel Benlamri shooting from long range to force a punching save from the Cameroon goalkeeper.

The Indomitable Lions gradually grew into the game and claimed the lead somewhat against the run of play in the 22nd minute: a corner kick saw Algeria goalkeeper Rais M’Bolhi fumble in contact with one of his own defenders, and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scored from the loose ball to make it 1-0 to the visitors on the night and 1-1 on aggregate.

Algeria should have levelled the game on 28 minutes when Islam Slimani did well to steal the ball high up the pitch before feeding a perfect low cross for Youcef Belaili, but the Algeria number 10 struck wide of the target with only the ‘keeper to beat.

The Desert Foxes piled on the attacking pressure after the half-hour mark, twice having strong appeals for penalties turned down (with VAR backing referee Bakary Gassama’s on-field decisions) – much to the frustration of the home crowd.

The first half came to a close with the Indomitable Lions still 1-0 to the good, but they thought they had given up their advantage just a few minutes after the restart when Slimani tucked home from close range, but the Algerian striker was correctly flagged offside.

On 55 minutes Mahrez squared up a defender and fired a shot on target with his right foot which was turned over the top by Onana, and the subsequent corner kick saw defender Abdelkader Bedrane miss the target with a free header.

Cameroon, already on the back foot, were dealt a further blow when Choupo-Moting succumbed to injury and was replaced by Nouhou Tolo just after the hour mark.

Yet the Indomitable Lions then missed two great chances to increase their advantage midway through the second half, with M’Bolhi making a great save to deny Leandre Tawamba’s goal-bound header before Martin Hongla latched onto the rebound but saw his effort blocked by Aissa Mandi.

Algeria dialled up the pressure in the dying minutes of regulation time, but they struggled to find a way past Cameroon’s deep-lying defence – with the Central Africans seemingly happy to take the game to an extra 30 minutes.

The first major incident of extra time saw Slimani find the back of the net in the 98th minute after getting onto the end of substitute Ahmed Touba’s cross, but the goal was disallowed after a VAR review, with referee Gassama indicating a hand-ball after watching a replay – a harsh decision given that the ball appeared to come off the striker’s shoulder.

Chances continued to come for the North Africans through the first half of extra time and into the second, with Ismail Bennacer notably forcing a fine save from Onana with a powerful drive in the 112th minute.

However, the Desert Foxes were finally rewarded for their persistence in the 119th minute, as Touba headed home from Rachid Ghezzal’s corner kick to make it 1-1 on the night and put Algeria 2-1 up on aggregate.

That seemed to be the end of the road for Cameroon, but deep in injury time they claimed a stunning winner – with Michael Ngadeu’s flick-on turned home by Karl Toko-Ekambi – to see the tie finish 2-2 on aggregate, but with the Indomitable Lions claiming an eighth World Cup qualification on the away goals rule.

The eight seeded teams for the 2022 World Cup finals draw on Friday have been confirmed.

This comes after Portugal sealed their place at the tournament with a 2-0 win over North Macedonia in the UEFA playoffs on Tuesday.

Pot 1 will contain hosts Qatar, along with the strongest seven countries to have qualified for the finals, according to the next FIFA World Ranking which will be officially published on Thursday ahead of the draw.

Pot 1 teams:
Qatar
Brazil
Belgium
France
Argentina
England
Spain
Portugal

It means heavyweights Germany and Netherlands, along with Denmark, Switzerland, Croatia and Uruguay, will be placed into Pot 2 and face the likelihood of a difficult group for the finals, which will be held between November 21 and December 18 in Qatar.

The remaining pots cannot be confirmed until CONCACAF qualifying is completed on Wednesday. If, as expected, Mexico and United States collect the final two automatic places they will both slot into Pot 2.

Poland are through to the World Cup in Qatar after Robert Lewandowski and Piotr Zielinski’s goals gave them a play-off final win over Sweden.

Lewandowski’s penalty early in the second half, after a foul on Grzegorz Krychowiak, broke the deadlock.

Zielinski took advantage of a defensive lapse to run clear and settle the tie in favour of the home side.

The draw for the finals takes place this Friday in Doha with the World Cup getting under way on 21 November.

It will be the first time the tournament has been moved from its usual summer slot, in order for games to be played in milder winter temperatures in the Gulf.

And Poland will be there after a hard-fought victory over a Sweden side that played a huge part in denying them a place in the knockout stages of Euro 2020.

It was achieved with a number of players carrying injuries too, according to Lewandowski.

“We had many problems before this match,” he said. “A lot of our players were injured, including me – I had a problem with my knee.

“We suffered, but now we can celebrate. I am proud and happy.”

Defender Kamil Glik, who played with a muscle injury, said: “It was new for all of us – for me, for Robert [Lewandowski], who had played many matches but he hadn’t played one like this, none of us had.

“I wasn’t interested in what would happen tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, next week, next year. All that mattered was the here and now.”

It was almost inevitable that Bayern Munich striker and Poland talisman Lewandowski would have a major role in the game – and so it proved.

He was calmness personified in tucking away his spot-kick after Jesper Karlstrom’s clumsy challenge on substitute Krychowiak in the box.

It was a hammer blow to Sweden who had been the better side and spurned the best chance of the first half when Emil Forsberg shot too close to keeper Wojciech Szczesny who saved.

The visitors rallied after falling behind, with Forsberg again testing Szczesny, but saw the tie slip away from them when Marcus Danielson’s poor control at the back allowed Zielinski to nip in, run in on goal and double the lead.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic was introduced with 10 minutes to go, suggesting the forward was not fully fit, but it was too little, too late.

The 40-year-old AC Milan forward has now likely played his final World Cup finals match.

After suffering a late capitulation to miss out on automatic qualification via the group stage, 2018 World Cup quarter-finalists Sweden have now suffered the ultimate knockout blow.

But Poland will have the chance to improve on their group-stage elimination in Russia four years ago.

Tiger Woods has prompted speculation he will return to competitive action at next week’s Masters by completing a practice round at Augusta.

The 46-year-old former world number one has been recovering from multiple leg injuries suffered in a car crash 14 months ago.

Social media reported Woods arrived at Augusta Regional Airport on Tuesday morning before making the short journey to the home of the Masters, a tournament he has won five times – most recently in 2019.

He walked 18 holes with his son Charlie and fellow PGA Tour pro Justin Thomas, a close friend of the Woods family.

“He played every one of them,” a source told ESPN. “He looked good to me.”

Woods is named among 91 participants for next week’s Masters but it had been thought the hilly Augusta National course might prove too demanding for the 15-times major champion.

It appears Woods used his practice round as a fitness test to see whether he will be able to make a sensational return at the first men’s major of the year.

He suffered serious injuries to his right leg and right foot in the single vehicle accident on 23 February, 2021. He had open fractures in the upper and lower portions of the right tibia and fibula.

Woods subsequently said doctors nearly had to amputate his right leg.

Since the accident in the outskirts of Los Angeles, Woods has only competed in the 36-hole PNC Championship, where he partnered his 12-year-old son and rode in a buggy.

He was videoed playing in the company of his caddie Joe LaCava at the Medalist Golf Club in Florida last weekend.

“I wish I could tell you when I’m playing again,” Woods said on 16 February this year, while hosting the Genesis Invitational tournament on the PGA Tour. “I want to know, but I don’t. My golf activity has been very limited.”

Woods added: “It takes time. What’s frustrating is it’s not at my timetable. I want to be at a certain place, but I’m not.

“I’ve just got to continue working. I’m getting better, yes. But as I said, not at the speed and rate that I would like.

“You add in the age factor, too. You just don’t quite heal as fast, which is frustrating.”

Woods has until next week to decide whether he will compete at the Masters.

His participation is likely to depend on how his body reacts to the rigours of playing Augusta’s severely undulating 18 holes last Tuesday.

Former F1 boss Max Mosley shot himself after learning his cancer was terminal, a coroner has concluded.

Mr Mosley died in his London home. The 81-year-old had been in debilitating pain.

Westminster Coroner’s Court heard that he shared his plans, had a final meal with his wife and wrote a suicide note.

Senior Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox recorded a conclusion of suicide, saying she was “satisfied” Mr Mosley intended to kill himself.

Mr Mosley developed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, a cancer affecting immune cells, in 2019, the court heard on Tuesday.

Having exhausted all the treatment options, doctors had told him he likely had a “very limited life expectancy” and he had been moved to palliative care.

Mr Mosley contacted his personal assistant the night before he was found dead to tell him about his decision to kill himself.

He could not be persuaded and had formed a “settled intent”, the court heard, and a suicide note was found the following day.

Dr Wilcox recorded a cause of death as a gunshot wound, adding that the cancer was a contributing factor to the death of “a remarkable man”.

She said: “I am also entirely satisfied Mr Mosley would not have undertaken this action but for the distressing and debilitating terminal lymphoma.”

The inquest also heard from Mr Mosley’s relatives that he felt his biggest achievement as president of the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) – the governing body for F1 racing and non-profit representing motoring interests worldwide – was “the promotion of road safety” and “green technology in F1”.

Mr Mosley led motorsport’s governing body the FIA from 1993 to 2009 and, in his role as FIA president, initiated widespread reforms of safety procedures in Formula 1 following the death of Ayrton Senna in 1994.

On learning of his death, ex-Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said it was “like losing a brother”.

At the time, Mr Ecclestone said: “He did, a lot of good things not just for motorsport, also the [car] industry. He was very good in making sure people built cars that were safe.”

Mr Mosley – the son of 1930s British fascist leader Sir Oswald Mosley – also campaigned for tighter press regulation after winning £60,000 damages from the News of the World when it wrongly published a story alleging he had attended a Nazi-themed orgy.