Kenneth Omeruo and Ahmed Musa almost became the first Nigerian players to win the AFCON tournament twice, but a late goal from Sebastien Haller prevented them from winning.
Super Eagles and Kasimpasa centre-back Kenneth Omeruo has revealed that Nottingham Forest full-back Ola Aina received death threats after Nigeria lost in the AFCON 2023 final. Soccernet.ngreports.
Omeruo, 30, has been a member of the Nigeria football team since his debut in January 2013, which won the AFCON tournament hosted by South Africa in the same year.
Ahead of the tournament in Ivory Coast, the former Chelsea player was appointed as the team’s vice-captain next to Ahmed Moussa in the pecking order and revealed how keen he is to repeat his 2013 championship experience.
“Me and Musa said to the boys, if you win, a lot will change for you and the country. When we win, the airport will be full and people will come to us. I was waiting to greet him, but unfortunately it wasn’t this time,” the former Leganesian player said in an interview withArise TV.
Omeruo, who played 61 caps for the senior national team, said the reaction of some Nigerian fans after the loss to Ivory Coast in the AFCON 2023 final had crossed the line and should be stopped.
“Someone wrote Ola Aina on Instagram. I hope you die.” These people don’t care about the consequences. We have to put on a thick skin and continue to win if we can. Because they won’t be angry if we win. There are people on social media who are just angry because they lost a bet, and there are people who didn’t watch the match,” Omeruo added.
Omeruo was asked about the impact of cyberbullying on football players in general after Iwobi suffered the same fate.
“Maduka could not participate in the call-up due to the events of 2022. I also spoke to Ola and he also gave me some comments, but his If you lose a player like that, “some fans who are not important will affect us. He was one of the best players in the tournament and was selected in the team of the tournament.” He had a bad game, so if you kill him, it won’t be very good.”
Omeruo is focused on leading the Super Eagles to the 2026 FIFA World Cup after narrowly missing out on the 2022 tournament to be held in Qatar.
