FC Porto’s manager, Sérgio Conceição, dismisses injury concerns surrounding Nigerian international Zaidu Sanusi.
Sanusi was substituted early during The Dragon’s remarkable 2-1 comeback victory over Vitoria Guimaraes on Saturday.
Zaidu scored for Porto, before his substitution, prompting fans to worry about his injury history, especially as he’s been recently plagued by injuries.
The Super Eagles left-back was replaced by Brazil’s Galena in the 55th minute, merely four minutes before Conceição secured the winning goal for the Dragons.
Amid concerns that Sanusi’s substitution might be injury-related, coach Sérgio Conceição has dispelled such rumors.
While he acknowledged that Sanusi endured some tough tackling, Conceição clarified that the decision to replace the Nigerian was primarily due to his subpar performance on the field.
“He suffered a strong tackle, was in difficulty, and before that, I felt he wasn’t at his best,” Conceição said of Sanusi at the post-match press conference.
“We shouldn’t forget the time he was out, the two games he played after the injury, and picking up competitive rhythm is never easy.
“He deserves credit for scoring, and when I saw him struggling, I brought in Taremi and Galeno, moving Pepê to a deeper position.
“It paid off as we could have scored more goals. We lacked aggressiveness in different finishing areas; we showed the potential but need to be more effective.” He concluded.
