Super Eagles head coach, Gernot Rohr, has confirmed that Bordeaux forward, Samuel Kalu and Chelsea defender, Ola Aina who played on loan at Torino last season are battling with fitness issues, Completesports.com reports.
The 60-year-old gaffer fielded questions from curious reporters who watched the two players train separately from their teammates at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba on Wednesday evening..
On Monday, Rohr had played down any fears of injury to Kalu, offering tartly: “Kalu is okay, there is nothing wrong with him”.
Kalu was part of the Super Eagles’ first training session at the Stephen Keshi Stadium on the same day (Monday) but the winger had his left thigh wrapped up in bandage.
The attacker has had to endure a series of injury setbacks in the past few months and one of such made him miss nothing less than two months of action for his French club Bordeaux during the 2018/19 season.
Despite his thigh being wrapped up in bandage, though, the skillful player showed no discomfort whatsoever all through the one hour and 45 minutes of the Super Eagles’ first training session.
Aina in training session
However, Kalu and Aina have trained on their own in the last two sessions.
“Yes, Ola Aina and Samuel Kalu have fitness problems right now, but it is nothing serious, though,” Rohr said.
“Our medical crew is attending to them and also giving them the necessary care they need for them to get back to a hundred per cent match fitness. However, we have to be careful with the two players, we need to be mindful of their physical and medical recovery.”
The super Eagles will face the Warriors of Zimbabwe in an international friendly at the same Stephen Keshi Stadium at 6pm on Saturday, June 8 in preparation for the 2019/Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.
The team will depart for Ismailia Egypt on a chartered flight on Sunday for their final training camp prior to the start of the AFCON 2019 where they will face Guinea, Burundi and Madagascar in Group B.
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