Newly crowned African Player of the Year Victor Osimhen is a star on a mission. He wants to transform the suffering of Nigerian supporters into joy with an Africa Cup of Nations title.
The Napoli forward topped the African poll last month to finish ahead of Egyptian Mohamed Salah and Moroccan Achraf Hakimi and become the first Nigerian winner since Nwankwo Kanu in 1999.
It was a reward for helping his club to a first Italian title in 33 years and also scoring consistently for the Super Eagles.
Osimhen believes he has the perfect antidote to the lingering suffering of supporters after the Super Eagles failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup - Nigeria must win the biennial Cup of Nations a fourth time.
Afcon rollercoaster
The Super Eagles triumphed at home in 1980, slamming three unanswered goals past Algeria, then edged Zambia 2-1 in Tunis in 1994 and Burkina Faso 1-0 in Johannesburg in 2013.
Since overcoming the Burkinabe, Nigeria have been on a Cup of Nations rollercoaster, failing to qualify in 2015 and 2017, finishing third in 2019 and making a last-16 departure two years ago.
Paired with Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau and Equatorial Guinea in the first round in Group A, Nigeria ar e expected to contest first place with the hosts.
Teams finishing first and second in each group are guaranteed knockout-stage places and the four best-ranked of the six third-placed sides also progress.
'Capable of winning'
"We are capable of winning this tournament because the squad is packed with players who are performing exceptionally well for their European clubs," says Osimhen.
"All of us are desperate to make up for failing to reach the 2022 World Cup. The only way we can achieve that goal is by wining the Cup of Nations."
Nigeria's Bayer Leverkusen striker Victor Boniface indicated on Monday that he will miss this month's Africa Cup of Nations after suffering a groin injury while training.
The 23-year-old was sidelined for his country's final warm-up friendly against Guinea on Monday and local media reported that he will be out for up to six weeks. He is Bundesliga leaders Leverkusen's top scorer, netting 10 goals in 16 league games this season.
Injury withdrawals
His injury comes on top of the recent withdrawal of Nigeria midfielder Wilfred Ndidi who was injured in Leicester City’s 2-0 win at Cardiff City on December 29.
Ndidi's Leicester team mate Kelechi Iheanacho is also struggling with injury and the striker was still being assessed at Nigeria's training camp with the expectation that he will be fit for the tournament, which starts on Saturday.
Nigeria open their Cup of Nations campaign with a Group A game against Equatorial Guinea on Sunday before meeting hosts Ivory Coast and then Guinea Bissau.
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