Johannesburg: Senior Nigeria World Cup 2010 footballers warned FIFA that members of the squad could succumb to illegal match-fixing offers prior to the tournament commencing, the BBC has claimed.
The Super Eagles dropped out of the tournament currently being staged in South Africa in the group stage after defeats to Greece and Argentina.
A UEFA investigator was supposedly informed before the competition by high ranking members of the set-up that there could be a risk of manipulation.
FIFA refused to deny hearing the report, but concluded it had "no indication" of match-fixing in any World Cup matches.
The potential problem is understood to have first been uncovered after a member of UEFA's Disciplinary Services Unit became concerned about suspect betting patterns during the qualification campaign.
German journalist Christian Bergmann also received suggested he received information before the opening fixture against Argentina stating that "some players from the Nigerian team are actually involved in some form of manipulation."
The allegations follow a tumultuous spell for Nigerian football after president Goodluck Jonathan announced he was withdrawing the team from international competition until 2012 after their poor performance in South Africa. This decision was, however, overturned on Monday.
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