Africa-Press – Ghana. Nigeria on Friday announced a provisional 32-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup playoffs against Ghana in late March.
The Super Eagles will travel to Cape Coast for the first leg on March 25 and host the second match on March 29 in Abuja with the winner qualifying to Qatar.
Head coach Augustine Eguavoen’s roster is dominated by players who were in Cameroon for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations and also include prominent returnees such as Odion Ighalo and Emmanuel Dennis.
The two strikers have returned to the national team after their clubs blocked them from appearing at Afcon.
However, as with any selection, some names are noticeably missing, and here are five of them and why they were not called.
Alex Iwobi – Everton
Iwobi would have made the squad if not for suspension. He was controversially sent off during the shock round of 16 defeat against Tunisia during Afcon.
Initially, Iwobi was handed a yellow card but the referee changed the colour to red after consulting VAR.
Samuel Kalu – Watford
Kalu, 24, debuted for Nigeria in 2018 and has since not been considered for selection.
The England-based player missed out on the AFCON 2021 squad as well.
The forward has been inactive for Watford this season. Kalu has made 17 appearances and scored twice for Nigeria.
John Ogu – Hapoel Nof HaGalil
The Israeli-based midfielder is one of that Nigerians believe should have made the list for the crucial games.
The 33-year-old has been in action in all matches for his Israeli club Hapoel Nof HaGalil.
He was part of the squad in Cameroon but did not make any appearance.
Kingsley Michael – Bologna
Michael who plays for Serie A club Bologna has been left out because of a serious injury.
The Fibula fracture has disrupted the central midfielder’s campaign as he only has two league appearances.
Since September 2021, the player has been injured. He made a return in Bologna’s match against Udinese but got injured again and has since not returned.
Kelechi Nwakal – SD Huesca
The 23-year-old attacking midfielder for SD Huesca in La Liga 2 was left out of the squad to face Ghana. Nwakali was part of the Super Eagles squad at the AFCON 2021.
The player made three appearances, coming on twice as a substitute in the group stages.
However, since his return to Spain, the player has fallen below the pecking order and has made just 1 appearance in 8 matches.
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