The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) said yesterday that it would take legal means to recover the money it has committed in the proposed international friendly match between the Super Eagles and their Bolivian counterparts if Bolivia went ahead to pull out of the game without genuine reason.
Reacting to reports that the South American country had pulled out of the friendly match billed for March 26 at the Ibom International Stadium in Uyo citing insecurity in Nigeria, the NFF said although it had not received any official communication from Bolivia, it did not lose its investment in the planned friendly.
The Bolivia Football Federation announced yesterday on their website that it has pulled out of the game with the Super Eagles, citing insecurity and the heavy political tension in Nigeria as its reason.
NFF President, Amaju Pinnick, had while defending the federation’s 2015 budget proposal at the House of Representatives on Tuesday, noted that the federation had commenced preparations for the game, adding that the Akwa Ibom State government had offered to pay for feeding and accommodation of the South Americans, as well as their appearance fees.
“The contract documents are there to protect our demands and I believe that Bolivia has no reasons to pull out of the friendly. We have already gone far in the preparations for the match. That is why we still believe that since we have not been communicated officially, we are still going on with our preparations for the match. One thing that is certain is that the Super Eagles will play an international friendly match on the March 26 and 29 FIFA windows,” an NFF official said yesterday.
The Guardian learnt that the NFF has commenced search for a possible replacement should Bolivia eventually pull out of the friendly, with Sierra Leone touted as possible replacement.
