Chaos in Katsina: Player Injured During Katsina United vs Barua FC Clash

Fresh concerns have emerged over player safety in the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) after Barau FC midfielder, Nana Abraham, was allegedly stabbed in the neck by a pitch invader during his team’s away match against Katsina United at the Muhammadu Dikko Stadium on Saturday. On a closer look in a video circulated on social media, it was a stone been thrown at the player causing a cut in the neck area, and it was attended to swiftly by the medical team on ground, as play was stopped to that effect. The shocking incident occurred moments after Barau FC scored a 69th-minute equaliser in the tense encounter. Images circulating on social media showed Abraham bleeding heavily from the neck while receiving emergency medical attention on the pitch. He was later substituted and taken to a nearby hospital, where he is said to be responding to treatment. It follows several similar episodes that have marred the 2025/26 NPFL season, raising serious concerns about the effectiveness of crowd control and stadium safety. In October, the NPFL handed down heavy sanctions to Kano Pillars after fans invaded the Sani Abacha Stadium pitch during a Matchday 8 clash against Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC). The violent scenes erupted moments after 3SC scored a dramatic 94th-minute equaliser. Several match officials and away team players were assaulted in the chaos, prompting the league to impose a ₦9.5 million fine, deduct three points and three goals from Pillars’ record, while also banning the team from their Sani Abacha Stadium home ground for at least 10 home matches. In an October decision signed by NPFL’s Chief Operating Officer Davidson Owumi, the league management vowed to maintain “a zero-tolerance policy for violence,” warning that any future infractions would attract even stiffer penalties. “We will invoke the rules wherever and whenever required to keep bad behaviour of fans, players and officials out of the league,” Mr Owumi said in the statement released on October 13. That statement, now more relevant than ever, underscores the NPFL’s ongoing struggle to translate disciplinary pronouncements into consistent deterrence. Despite multiple sanctions, violence has persisted at alarming levels.