Nigeria, April 4 -- FIFA expanded the World Cup to 48 teams. Nigeria still couldn't qualify.

Not after stumbling against Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Benin, Rwanda, and South Africa. Not after FIFA and CAF invented convoluted, kangaroo-style lifelines to drag the Super Eagles through. Still, they failed.

Then came the foolhardy petition, a desperate, comical move that finally exposed Nigerian football administrators as utterly unschooled.

So here we are. A bigger tournament, more slots, and lower standards, but Nigeria's Super Eagles players will still be watching from home.

The same old story of indecision, ignorance, and collective inefficiency. But this time, the excuses have run out. This time, the world saw clearly: the only thing smaller ...