Posted by Oluwole Josiah, Abuja on
Super Eagles captain, Austin Okocha, on Wednesday, watched the Eagles' train for Saturday's World Cup encounter from the sidelines.
Super Eagles captain, Austin Okocha, on Wednesday, watched the Eagles' train for Saturday's World Cup encounter from the sidelines.
Officials of the Nigeria Football Association confirmed that his condition had been examined and it was clear that he would not be fit for the crucial game.
He arrived the Abuja camp early enough to join the team at the training pitch of the main bowl of the Abuja National Stadium on Wednesday morning.
Spokesman for the NFA, Mr. Robinson Okosun, told our correspondent that the player was out of the team that would confront the Warriors of Zimbabwe on Saturday.
'Normally, a groin injury might take up to two weeks to heal, so Okocha will not be able to play. Even though he watched the Eagles' training, he could not train because of the injury," he said.
Meanwhile, Coach Austin Eguavoen has refused to make a categorical statement on the player, saying that he had scheduled a meeting with the midfielder.
Okocha was also missing in the Eagles away tie against Algeria in Oran, where they thrashed the Desert Warriors 5-2 to keep their World Cup hopes alive.
The Nigeria/Zimbabwe group tour cracker is scheduled to kick off at 3.pm on Saturday.
The Punch, Thursday, October 06, 2005