Nigerian legend, Nwankwo Kanu, was the surprise presence at the Super Eagles closed door training session on Thursday evening at the UJ Esuene Stadium in Calabar, Cross River State.
Spotting his trade mark African plaited hairdo, Kanu came with his younger brother, Ogbonna, and took time off to shake all the players before and after the training session, with Head Coach, Stephen Keshi, beaming with smiles at the support he got from the Atlanta ’96 Olympics gold medal hero and two times African Footballer of The Year.
Kanu said at the session that he was there to offer his teammates support, as he was still an active footballer.
He admonished the players to be relaxed but be serious as that was the only way victory would come easy on Saturday.
He said: “It’s like when you want to write an easy, if you take it too serious, when you get to the examination hall, you become blank.
“That is why I’m saying they should just relax their nerves and get the job done on Saturday.
“The quality here is too high for Liberia to survive us.”
During the session proper that lasted for two hours, John Mikel Obi, who came in on Wednesday and trained in the evening of the same day, was again the cynosure of all eyes as some fear for his fitness.
But the Chelsea of England midfield general came out smoking during the training.
Mention must also be made of Lazio kid sensation, Ogenyi Onazi, whose midfield touches were near excellent, as Keshi gradually zeroes in on his first 11 for the encounter on Saturday.
So far, it appears difficult to pick Keshi’s brains regarding the starting 11, but from the closed session, Nigerians should expect some surprises when the list of probables is finally made public by noon on Saturday.
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