Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr has reacted to the absence of the team captain John Obi Mikel ahead of their international friendly game with Poland on Friday evening.
The Tianjin Teda midfielder has been ruled out of the encounter with Adam Nawałka’s men due to work permit issue at his China base.
However, the German tactician is confident that there are capable hands who can take responsibilities in the absence of the skipper to secure the desired result in the outing.
“The only game we lost was against South Africa last year in June. So I hope this time will be better we have a team but we need a leader,” Rohr said in a pre-match conference.
“John Obi Mikel is our uncontested leader but it will be interesting to see how the other players can do without him.
“Unfortunately he had this problem with work permit in China which means he could go out and not come back so it was a problem.
“We are playing like a team and we have other players who can take responsibilities.
“We have a second captain, we have a third captain we have a fourth captain so I think the team will be able to give a good answer.”
Also, the three-time African Champions will take on Serbia at the Hive, London on March 27 as they continue their preparation for the 2018 World Cup.
In Russia, Nigeria will have to contest with Argentina, Iceland and Croatia in Group D for a chance to progress in the tournament.
