'They lacked respect' - Rohr blasts Eguavoen for resting Osimhen, Lookman, Iwobi, Ndidi against Rwanda

Benin's Cheetahs coach Gernot Rohr has strongly criticized Super Eagles interim manager Augustine Eguavoen for resting most of his key players during a dead-rubber 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Rwanda's Wasps on Monday, November 18. 

The former Bayern Munich defender mentioned Victor Osimhen, Ademola Lookman, Alex Iwobi, Wilfred Ndidi and goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali as the players he believed should have been included in the starting lineup against the Wasps.

The Super Eagles had already secured qualification for the tournament in Morocco with two games to spare, after Libya's road win in Rwanda before the start of the Benin versus Nigeria encounter in Abidjan.

Against the Wasps, Eguavoen made seven changes to the side, handing starts to Maduka Okoye, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Raphael Onyedika, Alhassan Yusuf, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, Victor Boniface and Moses Simon.

Only twenty players were named in Nigeria's matchday squad against Rwanda, with Ola Aina and Lookman granted permission to return to their respective clubs, and Nwabali unavailable for selection due to the passing of his father. 

Considering the fact that the Cheetahs were counting on Nigeria to beat Rwanda to boost their chances of qualifying for the 2025 Afcon, Rohr has blasted Eguavoen for fielding a weakened side and highlighted that the opponents were not given the respect they deserved.

In an interview with Africa Foot United, Rohr said: "We have already faced them in the World Cup qualifiers. The coincidence of the calendar meant that we find them again on the road to the Afcon.

"That's already 3 meetings with my former players, former colleagues. A lot of friendship, a lot of fair play too."

The Franco-German coach continued: "Unfortunately in their last match in Uyo I think they lacked respect by putting in a reserve team and resting players like Osimhen, Lookman, Iwobi, Ndidi, the goalkeeper.

"I was a little disappointed to see that, on the pretext that we had already qualified.

"But we were very happy to meet them again, the match in Abidjan we were leading 1-0, if we had played it in Cotonou, maybe we would have held on to the result until the end, because we had the public who were demanding and chanting Osimhen’s name.

"There are more Nigerians than Beninese there (in Côte d’Ivoire). It's a bit of a shame, but we did what we had to do against them to secure qualification. Yes, it was a great experience."

Nigeria and Benin will face off again in a 2026 World Cup qualifier in October 2025.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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