Nigeria said no reason had been given why their plane was sent to Al Abraq, about 230 kilometers (143 miles) from Benghazi, and that they were not met by an LFF representative upon arrival on October 13.

Players posted on social media that they had been left without food, Wi-Fi or a place to sleep, and the Super Eagles team returned to West Africa the day before the game.

Meanwhile, Libya complained that its team had received poor treatment in Nigeria before the second leg on October 11, which the hosts won 1-0.

Caf intervened and annulled the tie in North Africa, and a disciplinary board decided that Libya had breached two articles of its disciplinary code as well as an article of the African Cup of Nations regulations.

The violations concerned principles of conduct, safety in the organization of matches and accommodation of visiting teams.

At the time, Troost-Ekong described Nigeria’s treatment as “mind games”, but the LFF denied suggestions of foul play.

Ahmed claimed that Caf “did not evaluate the real situation.”

“The plane’s course was changed for technical and logistical reasons related to air navigation,” he added.

Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar told Newsday on the BBC World Service that the situation was “very unfortunate” and complicated by the fact that Libya is divided between two administrations that claim to be the country’s legitimate rulers. .

“Our team flew to a part of the country that was under the control of a government that had no diplomatic representation in Abuja,” he said.

The 3-0 win means Nigeria is one victory away from reaching the 2025 Nations Cup in Morocco.