Super Eagles goalkeeper, Daniel Akpeyi, has expressed desire to return to the national team in the wake of the widespread criticism of the goalkeeping department, SUNDAY PRIMANEWS reports.
The Moroka Swallows keeper has been out of the Eagles since 2022 and in his absence Francis Uzoho has failed to impress despite recieving the backing of the Eagles coach Jose Peseiro.
Asked in an interview with Goal Africa if he could be the answer to Nigeria’s goalkeeping crisis, the 37-year-old said, “I think I’m better than yesterday. Today is better than yesterday. It’s just that (I’m) waiting for the opportunity.”
The Super Eagles kicked off the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign on a disappointing note after stumbling to two 1-1 draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
Rwanda and South Africa are ahead of Nigeria in Group C, with only one nation guaranteed a qualification ticket in each group.
Despite the poor start, Akpeyi remains convinced that the Eagles will return to their peak, citing the example of Argentina, who lost to Saudi Arabia in the opening rounds only to become world champions on the last day.
“In Qatar, Argentina never did well from the beginning,” Akpeyi noted. “But they ended up winning the World Cup.
“Football has changed. No team is an underdog. Everybody is stepping up, year after year. I must say that at this time, we need to understand that aspect of the game and not because you have all the players playing in Europe and you expect to knock everybody down.
“You don’t have to get three points in your hotel room. You have to get three points on the field. And that is what we were not able to do. But I’m sure the coach already sorted it out where it needs to be fixed and all that.”
Akpeyi who has 19 caps for the Eagles started in four of Nigeria’s six matches at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, where the Eagles won a bronze medal.