Eguavoen dismisses accusations that he was forced to play Bassey and Dennis against Ghana

Augustine Eguavoen has responded to reports that he was told to field both Emmanuel Dennis and Calvin Bassey in the second leg of the doubleheader qualification playoff against Ghana.

Dennis and Bassey were both part of Nigeria’s inability to win the game, which resulted in a 1-1 draw with Ghana, who advanced to the 2022 FIFA World Cup on the basis of away goals.

“I’ve read the stories that I was ordered to play Bassey and Dennis by the Nigerian FA. It couldn’t be further from the truth,” he said.

“The truth is Calvin Bassey started because he did well in the first leg when he replaced Zaidu Sanusi. He deserved to start in the next game. The only people I discussed selections with were my backroom staff. They gave me their own selections too and I slept on it and made my decision on the day of the game.

“Calvin Bassey has been doing well at Rangers and Emmanuel Dennis has impressed at Watford. I stand by my decision to use both of them,” he concluded.