Nigeria head coach has defended his decision to hand a starting role to Benjamin Fredrick ahead of William Troost-Ekong in Nigeria’s 1-0 win over Rwanda on Saturday.
The Super Eagles hosted the Amavubi at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium on Saturday needing a massive result, but Chelle dominated the prematch headlines with his starting team.
The 47-year-old started young Brentford defender Benjamin Fredrick ahead of experienced captain William Troost-Ekong, in what was a very bold move.
Fredrick had only previously started once for Nigeria, but showed a very composed defensive display as his side saw out the victory.
Ekong would later enter the fray, although as a late substitute, coming on in the 87th minute for Cyriel Dessers.
“This is my choice and I don’t want to explain my choice. My job is to make choices and I did it. The most important thing is the three points,” the Nigerian coach said.
“Like I said, I don’t want to explain my choice because I need to respect all my players. If I choose something, this is my job.
“If we win, everybody says good choice; if we lose, everybody says bad choice. This is my choice. If I start to explain my choice, it will be very, very difficult.”
What next for Nigeria?
South Africa’s win over Lesotho a day earlier had meant that the Super Eagles needed a win to keep their World Cup hopes alive.
Despite struggling for majority of the encounter, Nigeria got their deserved breakthrough when substitute Tolu Arokodare fired in from a second chance in the 51st minute.
The three-time African champions are now third on Group C with 10 points and are six points behind Bafana Bafana, who they face in Bloemfontein on Tuesday, in first place.
Eric Chelle’s men head into the clash knowing that anything but a victory would dash their hopes of securing their ticket for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
