The Nigerian national team has responded to the controversy surrounding the injury of their striker, Omar Sadek, who was excluded from the Africa Cup of Nations squad just days before the tournament.
Omar Sadek’s absence from the championship was confirmed before he appeared in the collective training sessions with his Spanish club, Real Sociedad, after being removed from the Eagles’ list.
Speculation increased when there were suggestions of Omar Sadek’s possible participation against Osasuna in the King’s Cup on Wednesday.
The Nigerian Football Federation released a statement on Tuesday, stating:
“The Nigerian national team denounces the reports circulating in the media about the medical condition of the player Omar Sadek and rejects the baseless conspiracy theories, incorrect assumptions, and inappropriate insinuations.”
“We are surprised by the news circulating on social media regarding Omar and how he was excluded from the team’s camp.”
“Initially, we issued a statement regarding the player’s exclusion from Nigeria’s squad in the Africa Cup of Nations finals.”
The statement clarified that the team’s medical staff strictly adhered to the best medical procedures and diligently worked on their processes and conclusions before informing the coach, Jose Peseiro, of the player’s exclusion from the team.
“Sadek was fine upon arrival at the camp, underwent medical tests before the tournament, and was in good condition.
He started training with the team.
Unfortunately, he suffered an injury to the back of his left knee during our friendly against Guinea in Abu Dhabi on January 8.”
“The medical team advised him to leave the field as a precautionary measure, but he insisted he was fine and could continue playing.
Between halves, he reiterated that it was good to continue, and he played the full 90 minutes.”
“However, the next day, he woke up to find his knee swollen.
The medical team applied ice, a normal procedure.
On the same day, we had to travel to Lagos, and on January 10, we flew to Abidjan.
As the swelling worsened, we decided to exclude him until he recovers.”
Nigeria decided to include Paul Onuachu from Trabzonspor and Mahmoud Hassan “Trezeguet” from the Belgian club Royal Antwerp to replace Omar Sadek.
This injury is the third to hit the Super Eagles before the start of the tournament.
Wilfred Ndidi will miss the championship due to injury, and Hassan Youssef, a player from Royal Antwerp, will replace him.
After that, Victor Boniface was injured, and Terem Moffi took his place.
Nigeria competes in Group A alongside Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau. They drew their first match against Equatorial Guinea 1-1.
The tournament is hosted by Ivory Coast and runs from January 13 to February 11, 2024.
The group stage will be followed by the knockout rounds, with 16 teams advancing: the top 12 from groups one and two and the four best third-placed teams.
