Nigeria began its campaign at the 2026 Men’s African Volleyball Nations Championship on a winning note after defeating Chad 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-6) in Tunisia on Wednesday, September 16.
The Zone 3 champions dominated the opening set, defeating Chad 25-17 before repeating the same scoreline in the second set.
The team completed the job in the third set, winning 25-16 to seal their first victory of the championship.
With 75 points scored to Chad’s 50, Nigeria built their victory largely on their offensive superiority, recording 40 successful attacks compared with 24 for Chad.
The Nigerians also held the advantage in blocks (7-5) and serving (6 aces to 4).
After the victory, Nigeria’s men’s volleyball coach, Ryan Masajedi, praised his players for executing the game plan against Chad.
The Japanese coach said the victory would not distract the team as they shift their attention to their next group game against Algeria.
Masajedi said: “I am excited that the players played according to the instructions given to them; it shows our training programme worked out.
“They executed the game plan, and we had no issues beating Chad in our first match.
“We’ll shift focus to our next match against Algeria tomorrow (Thursday) and will not be carried away by the victory. We have to top our group to have a favourable pairing in the next round.”
Masajedi also applauded Nigerians back home for their support and cooperation towards the team at the Volleyball African Nations Championship.
Furthermore, Masajedi urged the supporters to continue believing in the players as Nigeria pursues its targets at the championship.
Nigeria is targeting the sole ticket to the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, while also aiming to qualify for the 2027 FIVB World Championship.