Super Eagles interim coach, Austin Eguavoen has voiced his frustration over Taiwo Awoniyi’s limited playing time during the recent Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, acknowledging that he cannot start all his players at once.
Awoniyi, who plays for Nottingham Forest, had missed the earlier AFCON tournament and the World Cup qualifiers in June due to injury.
He returned to the national team for the AFCON qualifiers against Benin Republic and Rwanda but saw only one minute of action in both matches.
The forward found himself behind Victor Osimhen and Victor Boniface in the pecking order.
“Awoniyi had a few minutes at his club before joining us,” Eguavoen explained.
“We have 23 to 40 players to choose from, but only 11 can start. It’s frustrating, but the bonding is there, and everyone is on board.”
Awoniyi will now focus on securing more playing time at Nottingham Forest in an effort to boost his chances of breaking into the national team’s starting lineup in the future.
