Maduka Okoye Revisits Costly Error at 2021 Afcon with Nigeria

• Maduka Okoye has not played for Nigeria since that error against Tunisia in the Round of 16 at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations
• The Udinese goalkeeper was ridiculed and abused on social media, forcing him to take a break from the Super Eagles
• He has rebuilt his reputation, becoming a starting goalie in the Serie A and will soon become the No. 1 for his country

Udinese goalkeeper, Maduka Okoye, said the costly error at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations still haunts him.

The young goalie's blunder in the Round of 16 saw Tunisia score and eliminate Nigeria from the tournament.

Okoye has recalled the fateful night, saying it was a mistake and refuses to look at what people say on social media.

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The 24-year-old made his Super Eagles debut in 2019 and quickly became a starter under Gernot Rohr. However, the current Benin boss was let go weeks before the 2021 AFCON tournament.

Okoye started the first two matches at the tournament and rested against Sudan since they had already qualified for the last 16. On January 23, 2022, he started against Tunisia in the Round of 16, but Nigeria had a bad day at the office.

Just after halftime, Okoye misjudged Youssef Msakni's shot, which bounced in front of him before going in. His attempt to keep it out was unsuccessful.

After the game, he was heavily criticised and abused on social media and has never played a single minute for his country since.

Maduka Okoye on AFCON mistake

The young goalie has slowly built up his reputation and was one of Udinese's best players in the 2023/24 season. He said the error still hurts today.

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“At that moment, I told myself I should have done better. It pains me till today, to be honest,” he told Oma Sports TV. "I’m still to this day unhappy and sad about it, and I wish I could do differently, but it happened and I learned from my mistake.”

He said it was a mistake but acknowledged he had to improve.

“You could see it was a mistake because I had to keep the ball out of the goal. If I want to play at Inter Milan, then I have to do better in such situations...It’s part of the game, and it was hard for me as a young boy to go through it after it happened."

Okoye is not concerned about the criticism from social media. He didn't start in Udinese's first 17 Serie A matches but played every minute in the final 21, per Transfermarkt.

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Okoye reacts to Nigeria call-up

Sports Brief earlier reported on Okoye reacting to his call-up to the Nigeria national team by Finidi George.

Finidi selected him for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and Benin, but he is yet to dislodge Stanley Nwabali.