World Cup Qualifiers: Rangers left-back replaces Osimhen for South Africa, Benin clash

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

Head coach of Nigeria’s senior men’s national team, Finidi George has announced replacement for injured Napoli forward, Victor Osimhen ahead of the next World Cup Qualifiers against South Africa and Benin Republic.

Osimhen is injured and will be out for four weeks which ruled him out of the two games and the West Africans will miss the 2023 CAF Player of the Year winner for the two crucial games.

In his place, Enugu Rangers left back, Kenneth Igboke has been announced as Osimhen’s replacement and this was confirmed in a post on Super Eagles’ verified X handle.

“Camp update: Africa Player of the Year, Victor Osimhen is injured and out for 4 weeks. Super Eagles coach Finidi George has called up Enugu Rangers left-back Kenneth Igboke for the WC qualifiers against South Africa and Benin Rep. #soarsupereagles,” the post read.

Nigeria confronts South Africa at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo on Friday, 7th June starting from 8 pm, and then fly to Abidjan to tackle Benin Republic at the Stade Felix Houphouet-Boigny on Monday, 10th June starting from 4 pm Cote D’Ivoire time (5 pm Nigeria time).

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and players of the Super Eagles have lambasted a report in an online publication, which claimed that players of the team have not been paid from monies given by the Presidency to the NFF to offset their bonuses and allowances.

The Presidency had, late last year, and following a process supported and personally followed through by the Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh, released monies to the NFF for payment of outstanding bonuses and allowances of players and officials of the various National Teams.

However, the said online publication on Monday put together what a senior administrative official of the Super Eagles described as “tissues of lies” and challenged the writer to come forward with evidence of his claims.

“The report is absolutely false, in every ramification, and we challenge the owner of the website and writer to come forward with proof of the claims. We want him to name the players who spoke to him because these are all tissues of lies.

“Players and officials of the Super Eagles have been paid for all matches played at the AFCON, yet he claimed the team was paid for only three matches. His outlandish claim of the team being owed for 25 matches is the biggest lie ever concocted by any writer.”

The writer also falsely claimed that only members of the NFF Board and staff of the Secretariat have been paid their outstanding allowances from the government money.

“This story is a shame. No player of the Super Eagles spoke to the writer. It is all pure fabrication,” a senior player told thenff.com.

Another senior official of the Super Eagles added: “The story is absolute bunkum. People should make an effort to verify whatever they hear from anywhere before going to the press. It is clear that this writer did not even hear anything; he simply brought forth something from his own imagination.”