Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has admitted that some of Nigeria’s high-profile players struggle to accept being left on the bench.
Chelle made this known while defending his decision to substitute Samuel Chukwueze during Nigeria’s 2-1 win over Tanzania at the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
The AC Milan winger showed visible displeasure as he was taken off, but Chelle insisted the change was purely tactical and not personal.
According to the coach, top players naturally want to be on the pitch at all times, but tough decisions are part of his responsibility as head coach.
“We have many big names in this team. They are competitors, so they are never happy when they are substituted or benched,” Chelle said during his post-match briefing.
“As a coach, I must make decisions. We were playing a 4-4-2 diamond, and at that point in the game, we needed to protect the wings.”
Nigeria will return to action on Saturday night when they face Tunisia in their next AFCON group match.
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