The Super Eagles have declined for the first time under new manager Jose Peseiro in the latest FIFA rankings released on Thursday.
The three times AFCON kings dropped five places to 40th position in the world and now 6th in Africa.
Nigeria’s decline in the rankings came after failing to seal an AFCON 2023 slot with two matches to spear, following the shocking defeat to Guinea Bissau Wild Dogs in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Coach Peseiro’s lads lost the first leg by a lone goal in Abuja, thus making it a fourth consecutive defeat, but then made amends in the reverse fixture in Bissau, winning by a one-goal margin via a Simon Moses penalty.
The setback places Nigeria as the sixth-best team in Africa, with Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia, Algeria, and Egypt ahead of them, as the top 5 best-ranked African teams.
Meanwhile, Morocco, the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists remain in the 11th spot in the world, despite their win against Brazil.
Brazil, on the other hand, has dropped to second place, displaced by World Cup champions, Argentina, while France climbed to second after two victories against Netherlands and Ireland in the last round of EUROS qualifiers.
Belgium, England, Netherlands, Croatia, Italy, Portugal, and Spain make up the top 10.
