Nigeria has Gift Orban, Chuba Akpom, Dessers, Akor, and Onuachu fit as a fiddle but now has just one fit striker for the AFCON Opener.
Despite having a striker glut, the Super Eagles coach will be lacking fit strikers at the 2023 AFCON.
Sadiq Umar becomes the second striker to pull out of the AFCON for Nigeria after Boniface according to Owngoal.
Terem Moffi will only join the team after the weekend, while Iheanacho is not match fit.
The Origin Of The Striker Challenge
During preparations for the AFCON, Nigeria played safe by listing only a 41-player-roster against the maximum 51 allowed by CAF.
Subsequently, when the final roster was released Nigeria, once again chose the minimum 25 instead of the maximum 27.
The decision leaves the Eagles battling with strikers’ fitness issues in preparation for their first AFCON group A game.
Afterwards, two players pulled out due to injuries and they were subsequently replaced but the option for strikers keeps reducing.
Fit Striker: Jose Peseiro or NFF, Who Gets The Blame?
The two parties are trading blame on who is responsible for the final numbers for the squad.
“The NFF decided that it will go with 25 and I agreed because it is easy to manage this number.” Jose Peseiro said on Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) TV.
“We first came up with the 41 players then the players who made the final list have been with us and they have shown good performance.
On the contrary, the NFF president, Ibrahim Gusau laid the blame on Peseiro, saying they went with his wish.
“We were supposed to name a 23-man squad then CAF later said we can increase the number to 25 or 27 but we will cater for the extra players in the team. At that stage, it’s not in the power of the NFF to make a decision. We reached out to the coach and he said he is okay with 25 players because it’s easy to manage.
Overall, the Eagles have only Victor Osimhen available for their first AFCON group A game against Equatorial Guinea.