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The Super Eagles camp has explained why Ola Aina did not feature in Nigeria’s 3-0 defeat to Guinea-Bissau.
Media officer, Promise Efoghe, said fitness concerns linked to the state of the pitch at the Stade du 24 Septembre in Bissau were behind the decision to leave out the Nottingham Forest defender.
Aina, who returned to the team this month after a long injury layoff, was an unused substitute, with Bright Osayi-Samuel starting at right-back.
Osayi-Samuel endured a tough night as he struggled to contain Guinea-Bissau captain Mama Balde. Efoghe said the decision was influenced by Aina’s history of injury on poor surfaces.
He recalled how the defender suffered a hamstring tear on the bad pitch at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein during Nigeria’s 1-1 World Cup qualifying draw against South Africa in September 2025.
The injury kept Aina out for almost a year and ruled him out of AFCON 2025.
“They are very similar. You wonder why Ola Aina could not play the game yesterday. It is a physiological thing,” Efoghe told News Central TV.
“Remember, it was on a bad pitch against South Africa that Ola Aina picked up an injury that took him out of football for almost one year.”
He also called for better standards in African football.
“We should stop all these dark arts in African football. If we want the game to progress on the continent, we should do things right,” he added.
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