AFCON 2021: Musa faces drop by Rohr

Super Eagles coach Gernot Rohr  has hinted on the possibility of dropping his mercurial captain Ahmed Musa  from the squad that will prosecute next month’s 2021 AFCON qualifiers against Benin Republic and Lesotho unless he finds a new club.

The 28-year-old Musa has been without a club since October 2020 when he left Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr and has been struggling to switch to another club while a proposed deal with West Brom in the English Premier League collapsed recently.

Speaking exclusively with NationSport yesterday, the 67-year-old German said the best players  in every position  would be selected for the forthcoming international matches, adding it would be difficult  to include a player who  is not match-fit  irrespective of his position  within the rank and file of the Super Eagles.

“This is a difficult question but I’m sure Musa will find a club before we pick the squad (for the match against Benin and Lesotho, “the ex-Bordeaux coach told NationSport, “The choice is to pick the best players,” he added.

“Of course, Musa has been training well but this is not the same thing as playing every week; and so it will be difficult .”

In a related development, Rohr further explained why he was not in a hurry to name the squad for the two important ties against Benin and Lesotho, adding that a day is a long time in football.

He said: “We still have about six weeks to the games and it will be too early now to pick the players; we are monitoring all the players and the good thing is that many of the players are doing very well with their respective clubs.

“As you know, we can pick the players even 10 days before any international engagement but in  the present circumstance (COVID-19), we can do that at least three weeks so that the players can sort out their travel logistics.”

The Super Eagles  currently top Group  L  of the AFCON qualifiers with  eight  points  from four matches and are closely followed by the Squirrels of  Benin Republic with seven points while Sierra Leone is third with three points and Lesotho in the rear with two points.