The Nigeria Football Federation has explained why the Super Falconets slept at the Turkish Airport on Tuesday.
Punch Metro reported that the Falconets were eliminated from the U-20 World Cup in Costa Riva by the Netherlands on Sunday, despite maintaining a perfect record in their group stage matches.
However, viral Images of the Super Falconets sleeping on the bare floor at the airport in Turkey had drawn public criticism to the NFF which was accused of neglecting the U-20 football squad.
A former Super Eagles media officer, Colin Udoh, who shared the photos on his social media pages said, “Nigeria’s #Falconets have been travelling from Costa Rica since 6:30am on Monday.
“They’re now in Istanbul on a 24-hour layover and sleeping on the airport chairs and floor, or wherever they can find.”
Reacting to the claims, the General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said the Falconets missed their flight from Istanbul, Turkey to Nigeria, adding that they were not stranded in the European nation.
In a chat with The PUNCH, Sanusi described the reports as mischievous and misleading, saying the girls missed their connecting flight.
“The Falconets were not stranded in Turkey; to say the girls were stranded is a mischievous statement. It’s the fault of the airline.
“By the time they arrived in Istanbul, the connecting Turkish Airline flight that was supposed to convey them from Turkey to Abuja had left and the Falconets had to wait for the next flight.”
Sanusi said the Falconets had finally boarded a flight to Abuja.
