Super Eagles of Nigeria dropped one step from 38 to 39 in the latest FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking for the month of June.
Nigeria’s progressive form was abruptly halted by South Africa in a 2-0 defeat in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in June and that loss reflected in the latest FIFA world ranking released on Thursday.
The Super Eagles were outclassed by Bafana Bafana in the June 10 clash at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium. Gernot Rohr’s men failed to register a shot on target for the duration of the match.
In its review of the performance of national teams through the month of June, the world football governing body’s technical team counted Nigeria’s form in the month under review as a loss.
The exhibition matches against Corsica and Togo did not count in the assesment released.
Nigeria lost 15 points slipped from fourth to sixth position on the continent but dropped one spot to 39th position on the global rank.
On the other hand, South Africa jumped up one spot in the world ranking to 64.
However they did not accumulate enough points on the continent as they slipped from 12th to 13th position in the ranking.
The top five in Africa include Egypt, Senegal, Congo DR, Tunisia and Cameroon.
The Pharaohs dropped sharply, losing four spots in the world ranking (24), but still hold the top spot as the highest ranked team in Africa.
Also, Nigeria’s next opponent in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, Cameroon dropped four spots to 36 in the world.
Their ranking on the continent also took a hit, as they slipped from being the third most in form country to fifth in the continental form guide.
The next FIFA World Ranking will be published on 10 August 2017.
Packaged by Lanre Olabisi
