Nigeria captain Austin "Jay-Jay" Okocha missed Saturday´s Nations Cup qualifier against Malawi because he did not come to Abuja with his international passport for the tie.
It is a standing rule that players passports must be sighted by Caf officials during pre-match formalities to confirm their identities.
Okocha´s forgetfulness meant he was ineligible to feature in the game, which Nigeria won 4-1.
The midfielder, who sat out the entire game against Malawi on the bench, admitted his error and subsequently apologised to coach Christian Chukwu.
Okocha, originally listed in the starting line-up, lost his place to Italy-based Christian Obodo.
Match kick-off, scheduled for 1500 GMT, was also delayed for 30 minutes by Senegalese referee Ndoye Falla as Nigerian FA officials rushed to the Eagles´ hotel camp to get passports needed for the players´ eligibility.
"The incident affected us at the start of the game," Poland-based winger Ifeanyi Ekwueme, in his first
Nigerianhome game, told BBC Sport.
"We were still a little nervous at kick-off and that partly explained why we conceded that goal early in the match."
FA secretary-general Taiwo Ogunjobi said he would investigate why those responsible for the mishap left the documents at the hotel.
Ogunjobi ordered an investigation
Nigerian teams have a history of poor preparations for matches.
In a Nations Cup qualifier in 1991, the Eagles´ playing shorts were forgotten at their Ota hotel camp, some 50 kms from Lagos - venue of the match.
The players cleverly cut their tracksuit trousers to the length of shorts to play the match, which they won 7-1.
In 1996, Nigerian officials forgot passports of the under-17 team in Lagos as the players filed out to take on Benin Republic in a World Cup qualifying match in Ibadan.
The Beninoise were eventually awarded the match and the Nigerians expelled from the competition on technical grounds.
