Bassey, Ebuehi, Onyekuru, Kalu Among Notable Omissions From Super Eagles List For AFCON 2021

Super Eagles interim coach Augustine Eguavoen announced Nigeria's final 28-man list for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations on Saturday, December 25.

And as expected, the list has been followed with several reactions, with some fans surprised to see notable omissions, while a few names surprisingly made the final cut.

Experienced stars Ahmed Musa, Odion Ighalo, and Kenneth Omeruo were among the final 28 who made the list but unfortunately, there were no places for Rangers defender Calvin Bassey, in-form Feyernood striker on loan from Genk Cyriel Dessers.

Other notable absentees were Olympiacos forward Henry Onyekuru, Bordeaux forward Samuel Kalu, West Brom defender Semi Ajayi, Venezia defender on loan from Benfica Tyronne Ebuehi, and Hoffeinham centre-back Kevin Akpoguma.

In this story, Sportsbrief takes a look at the notable omissions from Nigeria's final squad for AFCON in Cameroon.

1. Calvin Bassey

Bassey has been impressive under Rangers manager Giovannni van Bronckhorst but has been left out of the Super Eagles squad for the Africa Cup of Nations.

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Born in Italy, but decided to represent Nigeria at the International level, Bassey was in the squad for the game against the Central African Republic but didn’t make his debut. He will now have to wait to make his AFCON debut for Nigeria.

2. Cyril Dessers

Feyenoord striker Cyriel Dessers is another notable omission from the Eagles list.

The forward has netted 10 goals in all competitions this season for Feyernood but despite his impressive goal-scoring run in the Netherlands, Desser will have to wait a little longer to make his AFCON debut for Nigeria.

3. Henry Onyekuru

Henry Onyekuru was at AFCON 2019 but will take no part in the 2021 edition.

The 24-year-old star who is the most followed Nigeria player on social media has not had the best of seasons since making a permanent move to Olympiacos this season, and this could be the reason for his omission.

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4. Tyronne Ebuehi

There is also no place for Venezia's Tyronne Ebuehi on the list.

Despite the right-back cementing a regular place and playing week in, week out for Venezia, he was not found worthy to make the list for AFCON.

5. Samuel Kalu

Samuel Kalu collapsed in training on the eve of Nigeria's African Cup of Nations opener against Burundi at AFCON 2019 and he will not take part in the 2021 edition.

Kalu also collapsed on the pitch back in August but he recovered and played for a little before he was substituted in Bordeaux’s 2-2 draw with Marseille.

His season has been played with injuries and this could be the reason why he did not make Nigeria's final 28-man list for AFCON.

6. Kevin Akpoguma

Akpoguma is another surprise omission from the list. He represented Germany at the youth level and later decided to switch allegiance to Nigeria and team up with the Super Eagles.

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However, the switch didn’t go as planned as the 26-year-old endured a difficult start to his international career with Nigeria.

After featuring in two test games, The Hoffenheim defender made his competitive debut in the embarrassing 4-4 home draw against Sierra Leon last year and has struggled to hold down a regular place in the Super Eagles squad ever since.

Reacting to his omission from the list, Akpoguma told journalist Oma Akatugba: “They know what they are doing.”

Other notable omissions include Semi Ajayi, Oghenekaro Etebo who is recovering from injury, and Terem Moffi.