Still riding high from their 2-0 away win in Rwanda, the three-time African champions played a 1-1 home draw with Zimbabwe, putting their qualification hopes in jeopardy.
Victor Osimhen gave Eric Chelle's team a 74th-minute lead against the Warriors, but a 90th-minute goal from substitute Tawanda Chirewa ensured the points were shared at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium.
With just seven points from six matches, Nigeria occupy the fourth position in Group C, six points behind leaders South Africa, who secured a 2-0 away win against Gernot Rohr’s Benin Republic.
"Before the game against Zimbabwe, I said Nigeria might qualify for the World Cup, but it would be tough. Now, it is even tougher," Adepoju told Flashscore.com while explaining where the Eagles went wrong against the Warriors.
"We were on the right track after our win in Rwanda, but our result against Zimbabwe set us back. If we had won, we would have had nine points.
"The boys didn’t play badly, but poor game management at the end cost us the result. There was no aggression from the players.
"I expected them to be more aggressive when Zimbabwe looked like they might take the lead and not let them reach our area. That could have stopped their momentum in the final moments."
After the result against Michael Nees' team, Nigeria remains winless in the qualifiers at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, with various theories being discussed about the Uyo-based facility.
Adepoju refuses to believe in these theories, especially the one suggesting that the team is playing under pressure.
He added: "I wouldn’t say the Super Eagles are under pressure at home. Besides, the Uyo Stadium is the best in the country right now, which is why the Confederation of African Football approved it for the qualifiers.
"Moreover, the Super Eagles have won several matches in the past at this venue, and no one complained.
"If the results aren't going our way this time, we should look inward to see what the players are not doing right."
Coach Chelle was appointed as Nigeria's permanent head coach following the resignation of Finidi George. The Nigeria Football Federation's goal for the Franco-Malian coach is to secure the country's qualification for the 2026 World Cup.
Even with the Super Eagles' slim chances, Adepoju urges the former Mali national team coach to keep hope alive and address the team's problems ahead of future matches.
"At this point, it would be unfair to say Chelle is a bad coach - he is not. The only issue was the way the match against Zimbabwe was managed, which has put us in this situation," he added.
"Now, he needs to identify the team's mistakes and move forward for the upcoming matches. You never know what might happen. We just have to keep hope alive."
Nigeria will continue their World Cup qualification quest with September's qualifiers. First, they will host Rwanda in Uyo, before traveling to South Africa a few days later.
