Confederation Cup: Nigeria’s Enyimba denied access into Tunisia, CAF intervenes

The much-anticipated face-off between the People’s Elephants and The Teha in the continent’s second-tier club competition will no longer hold as scheduled because of travel restrictions

The CAF Confederation Cup playoff first leg fixture between Libya’s Al Ittihad and Enyimba FC slated for the Stade Mustapha Ben Jannet in Monastir, Tunisia, on Sunday, November 28, has been postponed.

The development came after the Nigerian representatives were denied permission to travel to Tunisia after arriving in Morocco on Thursday.

Al Ittihad play their home matches at the 65,000-capacity Tripoli Stadium in the Libyan capital, but they had secured CAF’s backing to host Enyimba in neighbouring Tunisia.

But Enyimba, who claimed they were not aware of the change in match venue, procured travel visas to Libya, which became useless on arrival in Casablanca.

Tunisia’s stringent coronavirus protocol requires that every member of the Enyimba delegation produce proof of covid-19 vaccination, which the Nigerian team did not possess.

But, according to a statement on Enyimba’s official website, the Confederation of African Football has intervened in the situation and has decided to choose a new date and venue for the fixture.

The continent’s football governing body, however, maintains that the return leg at the Enyimba International Stadium in Aba will be played as scheduled on the 5th of December in Nigeria.

Led by 1994 Africa Cup of Nations winner Finidi George, Enyimba made it to this stage of the competition by beating FC Diambars 0-1 in Senegal and 3-0 in Aba to seal an aggregate advantage.