Caretaker head coach of the Super Eagles, Augustine Eguavoen has explained why he substituted Wilfred Ndidi for Frank Onyeka during his side’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON, qualifier 0-0 draw against Rwanda on Tuesday.
With 20 minutes left before the end of the match in Kigali, Eguavoen opted to replace Ndidi with Onyeka.
Ndidi’s substitution came as a surprise to many.
The Leicester City midfielder was one of the best players on the pitch as he created the first big chance of the second half when he gave a precise pass to the feet of Moses Simon.
But the FC Nantes winger couldn’t find the back of the net.
Speaking at his post-match conference, Eguavoen said he brought Onyeka in because Ndidi has worked tirelessly.
“We were all over the place, so in as much as we were possessing the ball, we weren’t imposing any threat either and Ndidi has worked tirelessly,” Eguavoen told reporters.
“For us to bring in more energy and balance in the team, we had to do that and you all know Onyeka is a box-to-box player, he wasn’t instructed to stay there, once we go up there, you could see, go take the tape and watch.
“Few times, he went past opponents up there, he got a lot of energy, so he can run box-to-box.
“When the action is over, he is back in his position also.”
AFCON 2025 qualifier: Why I substituted Ndidi for Onyeka against Rwanda – Eguavoen
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