'The truth hurts' - Deeney blasts Super Eagles captain Troost-Ekong, says he's insecure

Former Watford striker Troy Deeney has hit back at Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong, labelling him 'insecure' following the defender’s reaction to criticism of his leadership qualities.

Deeney and former Sierra Leone international Michael Lahoud had questioned Troost-Ekong's leadership after the Super Eagles boycotted training on Tuesday to protest the nonpayment of allowances and bonuses.

Their remarks sparked a strong post-match response from Ekong after Nigeria's emphatic 4–1 win over Gabon in the semifinal of the 2026 FIFA World Cup playoffs.

Troost-Ekong demanded respect from the former players and even asked Deeney to return the Nigerian jersey gifted to him if he would not accord him respect.

But Deeney doubled down on his earlier comments, insisting he had nothing to apologise for and accusing the Nigeria captain of overreacting.

"What did I say that's not respectful? I said exactly what he is, he is a good kid," he told talkSPORT. He gave me a shirt, yes, I collect shirts."

"It is funny the way the questions were framed. If I remotely cared about it, yeah I would. But I don't."

Deeney maintained that while Ekong is a hardworking and committed professional, he lacks the toughness needed to confront football federations during crises such as the recent bonus dispute.

"Will is a good kid. In my opinion, when it gets to those situations with the federation, you do need to be a little bit nasty, a little bit horrible.

"And I don't think that's the character that I saw at Watford, wasn't that. He's a nice kid, works hard for his team and what he does."

The former Premier League striker also suggested Troost-Ekong's defensive reaction only exposed his insecurities.

"The one thing I would say is kind of given Michael a huge credit for now. What did Michael say he would do? Go out and do all the press and that's exactly what he's doing and kind of play into his narrative.

"You know what is happening when someone tells the truth, it hurts.

"So, if I offend you Will, deal with it. Will, I do know you, if I was remotely disrespectful, I will do it the right way.

"The second part about it is, if you have to come and tell people how many caps you have and other stuff you are doing, you are not really that secured yourself.

"Chill, Nigeria won, don't talk about us, let us do the media stuff and you do your podcast."

Nigeria will face DR Congo in the final playoff on Sunday at the Moulay Hassan Stadium.

Eric Chelle’s men will be aiming for another crucial win to seal their place in the intercontinental playoffs scheduled for March 2026, bringing them a step closer to qualifying for the World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.

Adeyemi Adewale

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