2026 WCQ: Finidi laments absence of VAR in Super Eagles’ draw with Bafana

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2026 WCQ: Finidi laments absence of VAR in Super Eagles’ draw with Bafana

Super Eagles head coach, Finidi George was not happy the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was not available during his side’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against South Africa in Uyo on Friday.

The visitors held Bafana Bafana to a 1-1 draw in the keenly contested encounter.

The Super Eagles were denied a clear penalty when goal hero, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru was hacked down inside the box in the 53rd minute.

Substitute Samuel Chukwueze’s left footed curling effort crashed against the crossbar, dropping down, with suggestions it may have crossed the goal line.

“I’m sure we all saw the AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire where the VAR was properly used”, Finidi said during his interaction with the media after the game.

“Even the Europeans were applauding the AFCON, you know. For me, I don’t know why in (World Cup qualifiers) like this, where everything counts and we couldn’t have a play or incident properly checked to know if a goal is properly scored or not.

“Chukwueze’s cross which hit the (underneath of the) bar, from where I was standing, I don’t know whether it crossed the line, but if there’s VAR, we would have had the opportunity of having a better view. For me, I’m just a coach and cannot change the rules of FIFA”.