6 Key Players Who May Not Make Super Eagles Team for AFCON 2019

The days of big names always sure of call up for national team assignment may have been over. At least, not while Gernot Rohr is incharge of the Nigeria national team.

 The German tactician insists, It is your current performances that will earn you a place in the present Super Eagles mix, not your past performances or record.

Well, some may argue that some players may be doing so well in their club and yet find it diffcult to bring the same level of performance to the national team. Alex Iwobi may be one such player we see do so well for Arsenal, in one of the world's best football league - Premier League; but hasn't been able to replicate such performance at the national team. This school of thought say, national team football is a different ball game.

Another thing that get fans worried is how the national team is evolving with more players groomed in Europe getting lined up to play for Nigeria in an African nations cup. Again, they say, African football is a different ball game. The games are more physical than tactical and the weather in Egypt is expected to be harsh tropical sunshine with hot winds blowing from across the sahara desert during AFCON competition this June.

Rohr may not buy such argument, having defeated one of Africa's most physical side and Afcon current champion Cameroon in the world cup qualifiers. An nobody can argue the result he's been getting; with his "ajebo players" he is winning important matches.

You may not like Rohr, but you cannot fault his style. He seems to be using a more empirical statistical performance data in choosing which player to call or drop. And following his body language after the matches Nigeria played against Seychelles and Egypt, as well as his recent utterances, you could decipher that all things being equal, he may drop some of the boys who were key players at the2018 world cup in Russia.

1. Ogeniyi Onazi may as well go back to his first love - music. Though, he is currently recovering from injury, but Onazi has lost his place in the Super eagles team. With players like Wilfred Ndidi and Oghenekaro Etebo bringing much more into the team play, Onazi may as well kiss the national team goodbye.

2. Victor Moses voluntary retirement from the national should should be respected by all. He left when the oviation is loudest.

 Rohr has managed to replace him, and with players like Samuel Kalu and Alex Iwobi doing well in the same position, we may not miss him that much in afcon 2019.

3. Kelechi Iheanacho's club performance has been dropping down and down on a free fall. If his game doesn't improve drastically in the following months, he may not make Super Eagles Afcon 2019 squad. Considering the fact that Rohr prefers 4-3-3 formation where ourside right and outside left form support attack for the striker; so Iheanacho may have no place in the mix.

Before now, Rohr has used Iheanacho as  a substitute striker or support striker when he is playinng 4-4-2 formation. But as it is now, Rohr has more strike options in Henry Onyekuru and newly invited Paul Onuachu. He may not require Iheanacho any longer.

4. Elderson Echejinne should accept his fate, he no longer has a place in the national team. We should great appreciate his contributions to the successes of Super Eagles in his career that span over a decade. The oviation is no longer there and younger players like Ola Aina may have dutifully taken over his position for the national team.

5. John Ogu's days are numbered in the national team as more better midfeld options are getting playing time. John Ogu has been sitting more on the bench and I see him slipping away. He maybe dropped  from the Afcon squad this time around. That may be one of the big Surprise.

6. Simon "Simy" Kalu isn't who you may call a key player of Super Eagles, but he made Nigeria's world cup team at the eleventh hour. Well, he didn't get to prove himself in the competition, so he will go the same way he came.

No room for him in the current team, especially now Rohr has found a player almost the same bodily built as the striker..