The Minister of Sports, Tammy Danagogo, said on Monday that he had yet to recover from the defeat of Nigeria by Sudan in a qualifier for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Falcons of Sudan defeated the Super Eagles 1-0 in Khartoum on Saturday in AFCON 2015 qualifying match.

The result of the match placed the Eagles at the bottom of its group, with South Africa leading the group with seven points, Congo; six points, while Sudan; three points.

Danagogo told newsmen that he was pained that Nigeria lost to Sudan for the first time since 1967.

“I am trying to overcome that loss; it was a shocking defeat and indeed I was really pained, Nigeria was pained too.

“But as sportsmen, we know that when you go into the field it’s either you win or you lose, so it has happened.

“We are trying to see how we can move forward from there,’’ Danagogo said.

The minister, however, expressed optimism that the Eagles would turn the table around, going by the criticisms the team faced after the loss.

He wondered why the country which is AFCON defending champions, should be struggling to qualify from a group which had teams that were made up of local players.