Yakubu Aiyegbeni has hit out at Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle over the manager’s voodoo claims following Nigeria's loss to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Nigeria missed out on the 2026 FIFA World Cup after falling short in the final of the African playoff, during which they lost on penalties to DR Congo.

Chelle was involved in an altercation with the Leopards’ bench during the shootout, after which he accused DR Congo of using voodoo.

“During the penalty session, a guy from DR Congo did some voodoo. Every time, every time, every time, so this is why I was a little bit nervous after him,” he told ESPN.

“I saw something like that (raising his hand, chanting something). I don't know if it's water or something.”

“During all the penalties, the guy from DR Congo did some voodoo.”

Nigeria head coach Éric Chelle explains why tempers flared between him and the DR Congo staff at the end of the World Cup playoff final. pic.twitter.com/nMyTIcqlTT

— ESPN Africa (@ESPNAfrica) November 17, 2025

According to The Athletic, FIFA or CAF could sanction the Super Eagles manager with a touchline ban and fine over the violent conduct.

Yakubu Aiyegbeni slams Eric Chelle

Former Super Eagles striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni has dismissed Chelle’s claims of DR Congo and claimed that it brought shame to Nigeria.

“If it was down to Voodoo, I think an African country would have won the World Cup a long time ago. He [Chelle] just needed to congratulate DR Congo and say well done for winning, rather than bringing shame to Nigeria,” he told Sports Casting.

“He is a shame to Nigeria, a coach coming out and saying it’s because of Voodoo. We lost on penalties, he tried to fight someone, and they had to pull him back. It is not a good look for him or for Nigeria.

“Our penalties were quite poor. The pressure was too much for the players to deal with.”

It will be a second consecutive absence at the World Cup for Nigeria, and Aiyegbeni added that he feels sad for their generation of players, as most of them would be out of the national team by 2030.

“We didn’t qualify last time, and now Nigeria is going to miss the World Cup, too. It's sad that most of these players will never play in a World Cup,” he said.

“When it comes to 2030, it's going to be a long time, and their age already is going to be gone. Then we have more young players coming up. Every year, you see new young players coming up, and I’m sad for this squad.”

Nigerians, despite their anger at missing out on the 2026 World Cup, have moved on, and their attention is now on the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, where they expect to win the title.