Sports
2026 WCQ: Rwanda coach seeks Rohr’s assistant to defeat Super Eagles
Thorsten Frannk Splitter, the head coach of Rwanda, has stated that he will be relying on Gernot Rohr for critical information in order to defeat the Super Eagles in their 2026 World Cup CAF Qualifying Group C match day 5 fixture on March 17, 2025.
Rwanda has a surprisingly high point total of seven points after four rounds of matches, which is the same as South Africa in second place due to a lower goal difference.
The East Africans can now increase their chances of qualifying for their first World Cup by adding Nigeria to their conquest list.
Rohr led Benin to a historic 2-1 win over Nigeria at Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny, Abidjan, on June 10, and Splitter feels the Franco-German, who coached Nigeria for almost six years before being appointed by Benin, is the right man to advise him on how to beat Nigeria.
“I am very sure we (me and Gernot Rohr) will have a phone call before; it may be two or three, and if he can tell me something, I will be stupid not to take it. For that, we will try to be in contact; if possible, we can help each other; for sure, we will do it,” the Belgian tactician told Brila FM on Saturday.
Rohr was carried shoulder-high by Cheetahs players after Jodel Dossou scored on 37 minutes to cancel out Raphael Onyedika’s 27th-minute opener for Nigeria, and Steve Mounié scored the decider three minutes into added time of the first half to give Benin their first victory against their illustrious neighbours in Ivory Coast.
Nigeria are stuck in fifth spot on the log with miserly three points in for matches, and the three-time African champions will look to revive qualification hopes when the series resumes early next year, which will see them host Zimbabwe on March 24 on the back of the Rwanda trip.
This will be under a new coach following the resignation of Finidi George on Saturday, June 15, shortly after the Nigeria Football Federation announced its decision to hire an expatriate technical adviser to boss him.