Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr confirmed that Ahmed Musa will not play in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Benin and Lesotho, but will train with the squad to keep fit.
Musa’s invitation to the Nigerian national team sparked reactions online as most fans slammed Rohr for including the 28-year-old, who has been without a club in months.
The former Leicester City forward left Saudi Professional League club Al Nassr in October 2020 and has not featured in a competitive match since the Super Eagles’ 4-4 draw with Sierra Leone in November.
However, Rohr has maintained that he is still the team captain and he is in camp to train and keep his fitness level.
“Musa is our captain, and he is a part of the team though he won’t play because he has not been active, but we want to assist him to train and he will also help our team as we prepare for these two important matches,” Rohr told the Caf website.
Musa, among other early arrivals; William Troost-Ekong, Ola Aina, Henry Onyekuru, Oghenekaro Etebo and Semi Ajayi had a light session at the gym in their Eko Hotel abode.
The team will start training at the Teslim Balogun Stadium on Tuesday morning and on Thursday, Rohr’s men will travel to Cotonou for the game.
Nigeria lead the Group L qualifying group with eight points after four matches while Benin trail in second place with seven points and Lesotho are at the bottom of the group with two points.
Meanwhile, the Franco-German said he is anticipating tough game against the Squirrels in Porto Novo on March 27 and against Lesotho three days later.
“We want to finish our qualification on a positive note, and the two matches against Benin and Lesotho are very important,” he continued.
“Of course, we know that Benin is difficult to beat after our last game in Uyo (Nigeria won 2-1) and we need at least a point against them to qualify for next year’s Afcon.
“Then, we are playing our final game in Lagos. We want to win in Lagos because it has been a long time since we last played there, and we want to conclude the qualifiers with a victory as well.
“These are not going to be easy matches because Lesotho drew with Benin, but we are going to give our best against these opponents.”
