Super Eagles of Nigeria have been ranked third in Africa and 32nd in the world in the latest FIFA Ranking released by the World Football Governing Body on Thursday.
www.tracknews.ng reports that Nigeria came third in Africa behind Morocco and the winner of the recently concluded African Cup of Nations (AFCON), Senegal, rising four places in the World ranking.
The top 10 best teams in Africa are Senegal, Morocco, Nigeria, Egypt, Tunisia, Cameroon, Algeria, Mali and Ivory Coast in the same order.
While the top 10 best teams in the World include Belgium, Brazil, France, Argentina, England, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Denmark and Netherlands.
In a statement on its website, FIFA said the new ranking method named “SUM” relies on adding/subtracting points won or lost for a game to/from the previous point totals rather than averaging game points over a given time period as in the previous version of the World Ranking.
The statement reads: “The points which are added or subtracted are partially determined by the relative strength of the two opponents, including the logical expectation that teams higher in the ranking should fare better against teams lower in the ranking.”
Recall that Nigeria, who exited AFCON at the Round of 16, commanded an impressive display during the group stages by collecting all available 9 points.
