Ayegbeni to miss Nations Cup

Oluwashina Okeleji
BBC Sport, Lagos

Yakubu says he will not be available for the Africa Nations Cup

Yakubu Ayegbeni has ruled himself out of Nigeria's quest for a third African Nations Cup title in Egypt next year.

The Middlesbrough striker told a local radio station in Lagos on Friday that he has no intention of playing for a coach "who doesn't need me".

Relations between Ayegbeni and Nigeria coach Austin Eguavoen have been strained for some time now.

The 23-year-old forward has often accused the Super Eagles coach of treating him unfairly.

Ayegbeni is in Eguavoen's provisional 49-man squad that is scheduled to go into camp in Portugal on 20 December.

But the striker says he would rather stay back in England with his Premiership club Middlesbrough.

"Will I be in Egypt? I don't think so because I've made up my mind. I want to stay with my club," Ayegbeni told Brila FM in Lagos.

"Things are not going well in the national team between me and the coach because he [Eguavoen] said he wasn't going to use me.

"It seems as if they're forcing or begging him to invite me. I heard he was in England but he never spoke to me about anything.

"Perhaps, he thinks he's doing me a favour by inviting me to the national team," Ayegbeni said.

"I respect him as a coach, I don't have anything against him and I'm not scared of him because he is not God.

"I wish him the best of luck at the Nations Cup. I hope everything goes well for them. I wish the players the best of luck too.

For his part, Eguavoen told BBC Sport that his reported feud with one of Nigeria's leading strikers is creating "unnecessary distractions".

He said: "It would be a terrible thing for the team if I were to start exchanging words with one of my players.

"I've not heard the interview but several people have been asking me about it. Let's wait and see what happens in the next few days.

"If he says that he doesn't want to be a part of the squad, then I expect him to say that to me in person."