It’s no longer news that 2019 highest goals scorer, Odion Ighalo has decided to call it quit with the national team, but the timing of his decision has left many asking questions.
brila.net understands that the 30-year-old forward would have love to continue with the Super Eagles, but the constant insults and criticisms levelled against him in difficult spell has made his place untenable in the team.
Ighalo missed glorious chances in Nigeria’s 2018 world cup last group game against the Albaceste of Argentina, the misses went on to cost the Country a place in the round of 16 of the competition, as Argentina came back to snatched the round of 16 tickets with a winning goal .
However, Nigerians singled out the former Watford striker for the World Cup failure , and insults were directed towards him and his family on social media .
The player wanted to dump the national team back then , but Coach Gernot Rohr persuaded him to prolong his decision, before the player hit form at the right time, as his seven goals in the qualifiers returned Nigeria to the African Cup of Nations in Egypt after missing the last two editions in 2015 and 2017 respectively.
In Egypt, Ighalo was on the lips of everyone once again for the wrong reasons, after he failed to score against the country‘s group opponents in Guinea and Madagascar.
The criticisms levelled against the former Udinese man after thesetwo games , led to his decision to leave and concentrate on his club career in future, this time after a lengthy chat with the head coach Gernot Rohr.
Ighalo however bows out of the national team with a golden boot of African Cup of Nations to name , after scoring five goals to claim the honour and he leaves as seventh on the list of all time top scorers for the Super Eagles
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