TheCable

Sadiq Umar, UD Almeria striker, has become the second player to miss the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers against Benin Republic and Lesotho due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

TheCable had earlier reported how Moses Simon also pulled out of this month’s games due to travelling restrictions in France over the novel coronavirus.

But in a statement on Friday, Almeria said they are afraid that protocols put in place in the club as a result of COVID-19 may have been flouted, hence their decision to stop Sadiq from travelling for the qualifiers.

“Due to the pandemic crisis that we are experiencing, due to the sars-cov-2 virus (COVID-19) and thoroughly evaluating all the impacts, we believe that the sanitary, security or bureaucratic conditions are not met, so that our player Sadiq Umar present himself to the call-up of the Nigerian national team,” the statement read.

“Therefore, based on article 3.1b of Annex 1 of FIFA RSTP, we have notified the player not to appear at the aforementioned call.”

As a result of this, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has invited Anayo Iwuala of Enyimba as a replacement for him.

.@EnyimbaFC Anayo Iwuala to replace Sadiq Umar for Benin Rep. and Lesotho clashes. #soarsupereagles#team9jaStrong pic.twitter.com/FU3kjuIvfr

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— The NFF 🇳🇬 (@thenff) March 19, 2021

The 24-years-old Umar, who joined the Segunda B side in October 2020, has scored 14 goals in 26 appearances for the Rojiblancos.