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AFCON: Reactions trail Sadiq Umar’s absence after club match
Following his appearance in a match for Real Sociedad, users on X have taken to bemoaning Sadiq Umar's absence from the Super Eagles camp during the 2023 TotalEnergies CAF African Cup of Nations in Cote d'Ivoire.
After suffering a knee injury during Nigeria's 2-0 friendly loss to the Syli Stars of Guinea, Umar was declared ineligible for the AFCON.
Paul Onuachu, another Nigerian forward, will take Umar's place, according to a statement released by the official Super Eagles account on X on Friday.
"Paul Onuachu replaces Sadiq Umar, who is out of the AFCON 2023 squad due to injury," the tweet read.
Nevertheless, the Nigeria Football Federation came under fire after a video of Umar working out alone in Spain went viral on social media following his return.
In a Copa del Rey match on Wednesday, Umar played eighteen minutes and the team won 2-0 against Osasuna.
The NFF's communication department responded to the situation by stating in a statement released on Tuesday that the medical team handled Umar's case professionally. This denied claims of carelessness and unprofessional behaviour regarding the withdrawal of the forward who is based in Spain.
An individual going by the handle @A__yabo tweeted, "I don't want to believe Umar Sadiq's case is a wrong assessment from Nigeria's medical team, it looks like a case of bigotry and politics," in response to queries about whether Umar had staged his injury or whether the NFF was careless and/or politically motivated in replacing the player.
"One of these two scenarios is true about Umar Sadiq," another user, @Nwafresh, wrote. 1. He pretended to be hurt in order to return to Real Sociedad, working with the Super Eagles medical staff. 2. The members of our medical staff lack expertise.
Arbito was overhyped, he wrote. Chukwueze is too good. Overrated is Paul Onuachi Iwobi is getting too much attention. Victor Osimhen exaggerated. Underappreciated player Umar Sadiq seemed to be the difference maker against Osasuna last night, but the management chose to cut him from the team based on a fabricated medical report. We have repeatedly told you that Sadiq is superior to every attacker on the Super Eagles, but you were only too happy to disparage him for missing the 2023 AFCON out of hate.
"Suddenly, UMAR SADIQ haz gained importance in the Super Eagles," said @mhis_blessing. I believed you all had no taste for him.