AFCON Qualifiers: Why I Invited Ahmed Musa- Gernot Rohr

The 67-year-old manager released a list of 24 Super Eagles players that will take on Benin and Lesotho in the final two 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, but it was not without controversy

Super Eagles manager Gernot Rohr has said that Ahmed Musa is not part of the squad that will take on Benin and Lesotho.

Rohr revealed that Musa was only invited as the 24th player because he is the captain but won’t participate in either of those games.

Musa’s inclusion in the Super Eagles list that was released yesterday drew criticism and outrage. The former Leicester City striker has been without a club since he left Al-Nassr in October but was named in the 24-man list.

The decision to name Musa in the squad ahead of Paul Onuachu, who is Nigeria’s best striker in Europe this season, did not sit well with Nigerians.

However, Rohr has now clarified that the ex-CSKA Moscow star was only invited in a non-playing capacity and won’t feature in any of the two matches.

“It’s important to clarify that Musa is not in the competitive list of 23 players for our game against Benin and Lesotho,” Rohr told BBC Sport Africa. 

“We’ve invited Musa as the captain by making him the 24th player, but he is not as part of the 23 on the list that will play our two matches.

“What is important now is to focus on the games ahead and not to be distracted by anything else. We hope for all our prayers to be fit and travel down safely for the matches.”

The three-time African champions need just a point from their final two matches to seal qualification.