CHAN Final: Ajiboye to continue in goal as Ezenwa ruled out out for three weeks
Captain of the Home-based Eagles, Ikechukwu Ezenwa, who got injured in Wednesday’s semi-final clash of the African Nations Championship (CHAN) between Nigeria and Sudan has been sidelined for three weeks.
The inspirational Enyimba goalkeeper is to also miss Nigeria’s historic CHAN 2018 final clash with hosts Morocco at the Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca on Sunday.
A top Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) official at the championship in Morocco hinted yesterday that initial report of the scan carried out on Ezenwa indicate that his injured knee would need between three and four weeks to heal.
“Ezenwa’s injury is not as bad as it was initially feared, however, the report of the scan on the injured knee showed that he will need between three and four weeks to get back to action,” observed the top football official Thursday.
The former FC Ifeanyiubah goalkeeper carried his brilliant form for Nigeria during the World Cup 2018 qualifiers to the CHAN competition in Morocco. He was partly responsible for Home-based Eagles progress to Nigeria’s first-ever final appearance.
Interestingly, Plateau United FC goalkeeper, Dele Ajiboye who replaced Ezenwa similarly gave a yeoman’s performance in the semi-final game with Sudan. The former junior international made several brilliant saves, including a last minute, point-blank effort from a Sudanese striker that would have dragged the game into extra time.
