2018 W/Cup Qualifier: Nigeria League Players Set To Lose Out

There are very strong indications that Super Eagles coach Gernot Rohr will drop players from the Nigeria league for next month’s World Cup qualifier against Algeria because the league season has ended.
Nigeria welcome Algeria to Uyo on November 12 in continuation of the qualifying series for Russia 2018.
For this month’s World Cup qualifier in Zambia, five players from the NPFL made the final squad – goalkeepers Emmanuel Daniel and Ikechukwu Ezenwa, defender Jamiu Alimi as well as strikers Godwin Obaje and Chisom Egbuchulam.
However, none of these players featured in the 2-1 win in Ndola.
“The players from the domestic league will be left out of the Algeria match because the season is over and the coach cannot vouch for their fitness,” a top source informed.
“He would rather use the positions taken by these players from the league to try out some other professionals based overseas.”
Victor Moses (Chelsea), Isaac Success (Watford) and Oghenekaro Etebo (Feirense, Portugal)are already set to return to the Eagles squad after they were ruled out by injury for the Zambia game.
Meanwhile, to underscore how seriously Algeria Football Federation (FAF) is taking the November 12 encounter with the Super Eagles of Nigeria in the group ‘B’ fixture of the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup, the Vice President of the Algerian Federation, Djahid Zefizef, last weekend visited Uyo to make pre-arrangements for team’s visit to Nigeria.
A reliable source at the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) told Tidesports source Zefizef who arrived Nigeria Friday morning aboard Egypt Air went straight to Uyo via a local airline.
Our source who pleaded anonymity said the vice president of the Algerian FA was however, delayed for almost eight hours by the airline before it eventually took off around 5 pm to Uyo where he, among other things, booked hotel accommodation for the large contingent expected to accompany the team. He was also said to have visited the Godswill Akpabio Stadium where the match is to be played. Algeria has not hidden its intention to get something out of their next match against the Super Eagles after they were held to a 1-1 draw by the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon in their first group game played in Algiers. This desire to steady their World Cup campaign apparently led to sack of Serbian Coach Milovan Rajevac after the first game against Cameroon. However, the FA is yet to name a substantive coach ahead of their team’s tricky trip to Nigeria. Only the winner of the group which has Nigeria, Cameroon, Algeria and Zambia will qualify. for the 2018 world cup in Russia.