Dijon Women’s Club of France striker, Desire Oparanozie remains persona non grata on the records of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), as the former Guingamp star has been left out of the latest list of invitees to the female national team, Super Falcons.
Megasportsarena.com reports that, although it is the very first squad roster issued by the Falcons’ American tactician, Randy Waldrum, he has apparently received an order from the football lords to lave Oparanozie out of the upcoming Turkish Women’s Invitational Cup.
Consequently, the once adored product of Rivers Angels of Port Harcourt, who captained Nigeria at the 2018 FIFA Women’s World Cup in the country where she plies her soccer trade, and allegedly led a players’ revolt over unpaid allowances, will not feature at the upcoming invitational in Turkey.
The competition will now begin on Sunday without Oparanozie, who fell out with top officials for ostensibly leading a pay strike at the Falcons’ camp in France and she was subsequently stripped of the captaincy, which was handed over to Asisat Oshoala.
Since then, Oparanozie has not been involved with the Falcons and, though she is on fire with Dijon in the French Women’s Ligue 1, she has been ignored by Waldrum, who has kept faith with 23 of Nigeria’s array of top players, led by Oshoala, Onome Ebi, Francisca Ordega and Tochukwu Oluehi.
The Falcons’ full squad to Turkey has three goalkeepers: Tochukwu Oluehi (Pozoalbense, Spain); Chiamaka Nnadozie (Paris FC, France); and Christy Ohiaeriaku (Edo Queens); as well as five defenders: Onome Ebi; Glory Ogbonna (Edo Queens); Osinachi Ohale (Madrid CFF, Spain); Mariam Ibrahim (Nasarawa Amazons); Chidinma Okeke (Madrid CFF, Spain); and Habeebat Akinwande (FC Robo).
The list also includes seven midfielders: Rita Chikwelu (Madrid CFF, Spain); Esther Sunday (ALG SPOR, Turkey); Ngozi Okobi-Okeoghene (Eskilstuna, Sweden); Antoinette Payne (Sevilla FC, Spain); Halimatu Ayinde (Eskilstuna, Sweden); Christy Ucheibe (SL Benfica, Portugal); and Patricia George (Sands FC, Germany).
Forwards that make the list are Asisat Oshoala (FC Barcelona, Spain); Uchenna Kanu (Linkopings, Sweden); Rasheedat Ajibade (Atletico Madrid, Spain); Francisca Ordega; Chinwendu Ihezuo; Gift Monday (FC Robo); and Charity Adule (SD Eibar, Spain).
