The Football Association of Malawi has written to FIFA to ask for their decisive Group F World Cup qualifier against Nigeria to be moved from Calabar. They want the match to be played in Abuja or another venue but the Nigeria Football Federation officials have dismissed their protest as a huge joke insisting the match will be played in Calabar.
They are also unhappy with the appointment of Hamada el Moussa Nampiandraza as referee for the match.
Belgian coach Tom Saintifiet, who volunteered to lead the Flames against the Super Eagles, told local media this week that he was not comfortable with the match being played in Calabar.
“Nigeria would like to play in Calabar because it is close to Cameroon in the south-east of Nigeria – not so easy to reach with the only connection via Lagos and Abuja but with no international flights,” he told the BBC.
“There are not so many hotels available so it will be very difficult to get there. I have one question also about security because the UK’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office says it is a no-travel area.
“FIFA they may have to think of shifting the match either to Abuja or to another place outside Nigeria because Calabar is obviously not the capital and it is not a big city. The accommodation is not good for such a big game.
“But I think it is also a plan by Nigeria. They try to disturb their opponents on and off the pitch. So in all the ways we must be prepared as top professionals to try to find solutions and make good plans.”
Malawi’s letter to FIFA reads, “There is security risk in Calabar where the match will be played, as reported by the Commonwealth Commission. The venue of the match is risky to our delegation and we would like FIFA to shift the match to Abuja or to a neutral country where our delegation will be safe.
“Calabar has been flagged as a high-risk security area and this alert cannot be taken lightly. Our Minister of Sports will be part of the travelling delegation and we do not want to take security risks by travelling to Calabar.”
The NFF confirmed that they have been contacted by FIFA on the position of Malawi. The General Secretary of the NFF Mr. Musa Amadu who spoke with our correspondent from New York said it was just the usual antics of teams who were not sure of what they can achieve on the pitch.
He said, “What they are doing is not new to us and Nigerians should simple see this as mere antics. FIFA has been in touch with us and definitely by latest on Tuesday our security guarantee should be with FIFA in Zurich.”
The Eagles have played their matches in Calabar for nearly two years to date. The Kenyans also made similar protest about Calabar before they played their game in March.
The Malawians also protested over the appointment of referee Nampiandraza, who they say gave a “below par” performance at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations.
Malawi trail Nigeria by two points and must win to progress to the play-offs.