Somalia's goalkeeper Mustaf Mohamed hangs up gloves after eSwatini blunder

The goalkeeper has been under fire following a howler that gifted eSwatini an easy goal in an AFCON 2025 preliminary round qualification match played on Tuesday in South Africa
Mustaf Mohamed, alias Nakujja, has announced his retirement from the Somali national football team in a post on Facebook on Tuesday following the Ocean Stars’ 2-2 draw with eSwatini during the second leg match of their AFCON 2025 Preliminary Round qualifier contest which was played at the Mbombela Stadium in South Africa.
“I have been playing football for a long time and I declare that my national team career is over,” the goalkeeper who is attached to Swedish Division 2 club IFK Berga said in the Facebook post.
More To Read
- Harambee Starlets set to face Gambia in final WAFCON qualifier
- Kenya to tap into Senegal’s football success ahead of AFCON 2027 - Ruto
- Cape Verde qualifies for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in history
- Visa users get first pick as AFCON 2025 ticket sales kick off in Morocco
- Sh44 billion Talanta Stadium project hits 61 per cent completion milestone
- No plans to relocate 2025 AFCON, CAF assures despite Morocco protests
“I thank the Somalia Football Federation and all the members I worked with throughout the years I was in the team,” Mustaf added.
Mustaf’s retirement follows heavy criticism he received for a howler he made that gifted eSwatini their first goal. After comfortably claiming a cross, Mustaf tried to restart play with a short pass but his weak attempt to release the ball to his nearest teammate was easily pounced on by eSwatini’s forward Sabelo Ndzinisa who easily slotted the ball into the net to put his team 1-0 up.
Even though Somalia recovered to draw the match 2-2 after scoring two late goals, there was a general sentiment among Somali football fans that Mustaf’s blunder cost the team victory.
Mustaf made his debut for the national team on October 9, 2015, during a 2-0 loss to Niger in a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier match.
Mustaf had moved to Sweden in 2020 after joining Nybro IF from Somali Premier League club Heegan. He spent a year at Nybro IF before transferring to Osakrshamns AIK in 2021. He then left Osakrshamns AIK in 2023 to join his current club, IFK Berga. Before featuring for Heegan, Mustaf had started his career at Midnimo then moved to Jeenyo United where he spent three seasons before his transfer to Heegan.
Top Stories Today