William Ekong of Nigeria and Zaidu Sanusi during the TotalEnergies Caf Africa Cup of Nations Afcon 2023 match between Congo Dr and Guinea [Photo credit/IMAGO]
William Troost-Ekong came under harsh knocks, especially from the Nigeria Football Federation no less, following his error in Bloemfontein
Former Nigeria striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni has defended Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong after the defender’s own goal against South Africa intensified calls for him to retire from international football, Soccernet.ng reports.
William Troost-Ekong, who has been one of Nigeria’s most reliable performers in recent years, was heavily criticised after his mistake in the World Cup qualifier.
But Aiyegbeni, himself remembered for the open-goal miss against South Korea at the 2010 World Cup, said Nigerians must stop scapegoating individuals for collective failings.
“We’re talking about me missing a goal. Now everyone is talking about the captain, Ekong,” Aiyegbeni told the Sunday Oliseh Podcast.
“He scored an own goal. So what? He didn’t mean to score that own goal. It happens. We Nigerians, we have to understand. We are always waiting to put blame on one or two players. Oh, it’s because of this guy we did not qualify for the World Cup. But that’s not the case.”
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The former Everton forward insisted William Troost-Ekong remains a leader in the dressing room and warned against judging players too harshly.
Instead, he turned the spotlight on Nigeria’s tactical setup, describing the side as one-dimensional and reliant on individual brilliance.
“This boy, Ekong, is a leader in that team. He made mistakes, yes. South Africa passed the ball better than us. We cannot even put six or seven passes together. When we try to play, we just end up kicking it long,” Aiyegbeni said.
“We say we want to build a team, but you cannot build a team like this. We don’t play as a unit; we rely on individual magic. We expect Ademola Lookman to make magic, we expect Victor Osimhen to make magic. That is not how to build a successful team.”
Nigeria’s qualifying campaign has been plagued by inconsistency, with frustrating draws against Zimbabwe, Lesotho and South Africa leaving them third in Group C with 11 points, six behind leaders South Africa and three behind Benin Republic with two matches left.
Aiyegbeni, who scored 21 goals in 58 appearances for Nigeria, argued that the midfield lacks creativity, making life unnecessarily difficult for strikers.
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“When we look at the team, we have too many defensive midfielders and not many attacking midfielders,” the former Portsmouth man added.
“If I play in this team, I will struggle to score goals because when I look at Osimhen when he plays, he is fighting because he knows already when he sees the goals he scores, and he has to hustle by himself.”
Aiyegbeni, Nigeria’s fourth-highest all-time scorer, has repeatedly called for a more balanced and cohesive approach, warning that unless the team addresses its tactical flaws, scapegoating individuals like Troost-Ekong will do nothing to change results.