Iheanacho snubs press conference as rift with Peseiro deepens

Iheanacho is yet to play a single minute at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Cote d’Ivoire

Leicester City striker, Kelechi Iheanacho has failed to show up for the pre-match press conference scheduled ahead of Nigeria’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) semi-final clash against South Africa, as his rift with head coach, Jose Peseiro deepens.

The Super Eagles striker is yet to play a single minute at the ongoing tournament in Cote d’Ivoire.

However, Peseiro, while explaining the Championship star’s lack of playing time, claimed it was due to his fitness level after recovering from injury.

Iheanacho, is not the only Super Eagles star yet to play at the tournament, the likes of Terem Moffi, Ahmed Musa and Bruno Onyemaechi, have also found playing time difficult to come by.

ALSO READ: Sanusi doubtful for S’Eagles’ semi-final clash against South Africa

CAF had announced that Iheanacho would appear alongside Peseiro for the press conference ahead of the clash against Bafana Bafana, but he was nowhere to be found. Instead, it was Nothingham Forest defender, Ola Aina, who faced pressmen to answer questions.

According to Soccernet, Iheanacho’s absence from the press conference despite initially being scheduled to attend alongside coach Peseiro, stems from his dissatisfaction with his limited playing time during the tournament.

There are speculations that Peseiro is struggling to integrate Iheanacho into his preferred 3-4-3 system, preferring to introduce defensive substitutes rather than attacking ones during games.