A denial of entry into Gabon of Nigeria’s U17 national team over Ebola fears has led the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to report by Gabonese authorities to the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Players and officials of the Golden Eaglets were on their way to Gabonese capital, Libreville for a 2015 African U17 Championship qualfier when asked to disembark from a flight in Lome, Togo.

The Nigerian team had initially been unable to fly direct from Lagos to Libreville after all Gabon-bound flights from Lagos were cancelled, resulting in the team making the road trip to Cotonou in Benin Republic.

However, after the team were issued boarding passes to fly to Libreville via Lome with ASKY Airline, airline officials informed the team on reaching Lome that their trip would have to be suspended on the instruction of Gabonese authorities.

In the protest letter to CAF, NFF Secretary General Musa Amadu said ”We strongly protest this harsh, unkind and unfair treatment of players below the age of 17, who have had to go through this arduous and tiring journey only to further their career in football.”

Amadu stated further that “Our players have taken serious precautions and even have Ebola–free medical certificates,” adding “We are very much aware that CAF has stated clearly that football matches should not take place in only three countries, namely Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, as a result of the Ebola Virus Disease pandemic.”