Afcon qualifiers: Nigeria awarded forfeit 3-0 win against Libya

Nigeria have been awarded a 3-0 forfeit win against Libya after complaining of mistreatment of their players on arrival in the north African country for an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier match.

The disciplinary board of Confederation of African Football (Caf) on Saturday said it had found Libya in breach of regulations and the disciplinary code.

It also fined Libya's football federation a sum of $50,000 that is to be paid within 60 days.

The win puts Nigeria on the brink of qualifying for next year’s finals as they sit top of Group D. The three points took Nigeria to 10 with two matches left to play, four ahead of second-placed Benin and five ahead of Rwanda.

Airport drama

The Super Eagles refused to play the match earlier this month after the team was kept in a locked airport for over 16 hours almost 250km away from their intended destination.

This was after their charter flight was redirected while on approach to Benghazi and instead landed in Bayda.

The Libyan Football Federation (LFF) had blamed Nigeria for the postponement of the match. It said the incident was not deliberate and had urged Nigeria to be understanding.

Libya argued that their players and officials had also been mistreated on arrival in Nigeria for the first-leg of the qualifier in Uyo, which saw their flight land hours away from the match venue and the players endured long travel delays.

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