Afcon2023: Injured Leicester duo Ndidi and Iheanacho to join Eagles’s camp but Enyeama distances himself

Leicester City manager Enzo Maresca has confirmed that Wilfred Ndidi and Kelechi Iheanacho will join Nigeria’s camp ahead of the 2023 African Cup of Nations (Afcon).

There had been doubts over Iheanacho’s participation at the AFCON which will take place in Ivory Coast from January 13 after the Leicester striker suffered a muscle injury.

The Nigerian international was missing from the Foxes’ 2-0 win over Cardiff City in the Championship over the weekend and Maresca revealed he had picked up an injury in the aftermath of the draw with Ipswich on Boxing Day.

Maresca also revealed on Monday night that Ndidi has joined his international teammate, Iheanacho in the treatment room.

Ndidi missed Leicester’s 4-1 mauling of Huddersfield Town at the King Power Stadium on New Year’s Day.

Iheanacho also missed the Championship game due to a muscular injury.

“Kele and Wilf are both injured, but they are now going to be with the international team,” Maresca was quoted by Leicester Mercury.

“We’ll see if they’re going to keep them or send them back. But they are both injured unfortunately for us.”

Elsewhere, former Super Eagles goalkeeper, Vincent Enyeama, has opened up on his cryptic message about being in the Super Eagles camp for the upcoming Afcon.

Enyeama dropped a puzzling message via Instagram on Sunday, hinting he could join the technical crew of the national team when the camp opened on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

He wrote, “Let’s go, see you in camp. Time for business,” while reacting to a post about the team’s Afcon preparations on the official Instagram account of the Super Eagles.

On Tuesday, he, however, shed light on his supposed engagement with the team.

“I haven’t been given any appointment by the NFF, neither was there any such discussion. That was only a personal comment meaning I will visit them in camp when I attend the AFCON. Any opportunity to encourage the lads, I use it,” the former Eagles captain said.

Ahead of their quest for a fourth Afcon title, the Eagles camp opened on Tuesday in Abu Dhabi.  The camp will last till January 9, before the team departs for Ivory Coast from Lagos on January 10.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation has also denied adding the former goalkeeper to the Eagles technical crew, ahead of the tournament.

“NFF has not offered Enyeama any role. People should stop the bruising of this very fake news. It is annoying. If there is anything like that, there would be a statement from the NFF,” NFF Director of Media and Communications, Ademola Olajire, said. Enyeama has distanced himself from the Eagles, since calling it quits unceremoniously in 2015.

Recently, the 41-year-old spoke about how NFF’s poor treatment led to his retirement from the team at 33.

The former Lille goalkeeper said he was deeply hurt by the treatment but added that he had moved on from holding any grudges.

“Sincerely, I have not been following Nigerian football right from the day I left. With due respect, I was treated like a piece of used material, so I put up a block between me and the national team.

“It is now that I am beginning to follow what is going on but I put a stop to watching football or watching the national team.

“I was deeply hurt but now I am really at ease. I have moved, I’ve changed chapters, I’ve changed the page. This is it, I can’t say much about the national team and the goalkeeping and all of that because I am not watching them,” Enyeama said in an interview.