Rohr: It will be difficult to get Mikel, Ighalo’s replacement

Super Eagles coach, Gernot Rohr has stated that the retirement of the team’s skipper, John Obi Mikel and Odion Jude Ighalo will be a big loss to the Nigerian team because of their attitude and professionalism to the sport they cherish so much.

Mikel called time out on his career with the Eagles in an emotional laden social media post while Ighalo also did the same yesterday.

Rohr noted that the experience they have both offered to the young Eagles squad will be invaluable now that they have left the team.

He described Mikel Obi as a true leader that has done so much for Nigerian football.

“Yes his experience will be a big loss to the team,” Rohr explained to

SportingLife.ng on the retirement of the former Chelsea midfielder. “He did so much for Nigerian football and he had a wonderful career. His attitude can never be faulted and he is a professional to the

core.

In each training session, he also gives his best. “It is unfortunate that injury played a big role in his absence in

some of the matches at the AFCON.  He started the AFCON games with his teammates. He led the team very well.”

The Franco-German eulogized the virtuous of Ighalo and he expressed his delight that the China-based striker was able to reply his critics with his performances during the AFCON qualifiers and the AFCON proper

in Egypt where he scored seven and five goals respectively.

He rued life without Ighalo in the Eagles squad and also admitted that it would take a while before a replacement could be found for the Shanghai Shenhua forward.

“He left already for his club in China because they need him for an important league game next Sunday because they ate currently struggling in the league and are presently in the relegation zone,”

Rohr said.

“He is a wonderful man and he did so well after the criticism he faced after the 2018 World Cup. He needed to reply to all those that spoke ill of him after Russia with his performance and he has done that with being the top scorer at the end of the 2019 AFCON qualifiers.

“He has also given his answer at the current AFCON with the five goals he scored. If he stops his career I can understand it because he has stopped at the highest level. But it will be a big miss for Nigerian

football to find again such goal scorer.”

read also: Ighalo ends AFCON 2019 with hamstring