Umar Sadiq Inspires Real Sociedad To Beat Osasuna Days After Exiting Super Eagles AFCON Camp

Nigerian footballer who plays as forward for the Super Eagles, Umar Sadiq, made an appearance in Real Sociedad squad that defeated Osasuna in their Copa del Rey match on Wednesday.

Sportxparte recalls that Umar Sadiq was forced to leave Nigeria’s AFCON camp a few days ago over an alleged injury.

It should be noted that Sadiq was initially included in the Super Eagles’ 25-man squad for the 2023 AFCON, which began in Ivory Coast on January 13.

However, the team announced his withdrawal from the squad due to an injury he sustained during a pre-tournament friendly against Guinea on January 9.

Following his injury, the team replaced Umar Sadiq with Paul Onuachu.

Surprisingly, less than three days later, Sadiq was spotted training at his club’s camp, leading to speculations that the Super Eagles doctor may have misdiagnosed his injury.

Nevertheless, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) released a statement affirming that the team followed the appropriate procedures to confirm Sadiq Umar’s injury and that there was no mistake in the process.

On Tuesday, January 16, shortly after the NFF’s statement, Real Sociedad announced their squad list for the Copa del Rey match against Osasuna, which took place on Wednesday night.

Sadiq Umar began the match on the bench and was brought into the game in the 73rd minute. Prior to his entry, Real Sociedad had already taken the lead with a goal from Mikel Oyarzabal, who scored from a penalty kick.

Furthermore, prior to his involvement in the match, Osasuna found themselves at a disadvantage as Alejandro Catena received a red card in the 56th minute.

The presence of Sadiq Umar on the field nearly resulted in two goals, but Brais Méndez failed to convert a penalty in the 97th minute. However, Mikel Merino secured a 2-0 victory for the team through a rebound from the penalty kick.

Umar is anticipated to participate once again on January 20th, when Sociedad faces off against Celta Vigo in the Spanish La Liga. Meanwhile, his fellow countrymen will also be in action later tonight (6 p.m.) against Ivory Coast, the hosts of the 2023 AFCON, in their second group-stage match.