COMMENT
Nigeria fans want Vincent Enyeama back between the sticks for the World Cup, with the Super Eagles centurion overwhelmingly winning a recent Goal poll.
The LOSC Lille stopper received 61 percent of the votes when we asked readers who they’d most like to see start for Nigeria next summer.
Despite overwhelmingly convincing preparation for the Russia World Cup, Gernot Rohr still has a conundrum between the sticks, where Carl Ikeme is unavailable following his diagnosis with acute leukaemia.
The Wolves No. 1 stepped into a starting role following Enyeama’s premature retirement from international duty, and his sustained absence has seen the German coach experiment with various options.
Even though he’s yet to reverse his decision, the legendary Enyeama still remains the favourite with Nigeria fans, with the majority of respondents hoping—if not praying—that he returns for next summer’s showpiece.
According to our poll, the other options don’t have much faith with Goal readers.
NICOLAS TUCAT/AFP/Getty Images
Wonderkid Francis Uzoho, who made his debut at half time against Argentina, is the ‘best of the rest’ according to those who answered our poll, with the Deportivo La Coruna man picking up 26 percent of the votes.
It’s telling, perhaps, that a 19-year-old with only 45 minutes of international experience garners significantly more confidence among supporters than some of the other options used by Rohr during the qualifiers.
Worryingly, incumbent No. 1 Ikechukwu Ezenwa, who has been first-choice since Ikeme’s diagnosis, received just nine percent of the votes.
Certainly, his stock has been dented after a few nervy moments, but this demonstrates a worryingly lack of confidence in the incumbent on the part of Nigeria fans.
Elsewhere, Daniel Akpeyi’s popularity ratings are at an all-time low after his horror error against Argentina, where he was fortunate to get away without a first-half red card.
He received a miserable one percent of the votes with, by comparison, Dele Alampasu picking up three percent.
At this stage, it appears as though Akpeyi might just be lucky to make the plane, and forget about starting in Russia.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=640&quality=60)