The NFF said it is facing challenges paying the super eagles their match bonuses for the world cup qualifier against Swaziland because of the Federal Government’s stand on the Treasury Single Account.
The players are awaiting $5,000 each for their victory, plus payments for the draw they secured against the same team last Friday in Lobamba. Previously, players got their bonuses immediately after the match.
An NFF board member told Punch on Wednesday, “The situation is quite challenging. It is not just the TSA but we have yet to get approval to pay them. Everything has been reworked with the new policy and so we have to get approval before payments are made and we have not secured that as of now.”
To help solve this problem, the players have been asked by the NFF to open domiciliary accounts so that their payment can be transferred to them wherever they are. The players were asked to do so soon after the match in Tanzania as Punch reported.
NFF officials met with the players on Tuesday night to again explain the details of the new policy and its challenges.
The challenge was first witnessed in Chile during the FIFA U-17 World Cup but the NFF officials were able to handle the situation with “tact and astute diplomacy”.
“The fact that the players did well helped to douse the tension and quicken every process needed to make the payment possible,” the official said.
The Eagles have however received $40,000 from the Rivers State Government, which promised them $20,000-per-goal for the match against Swaziland.