Super Eagles and Lazio midfielder Ogenyi Onazi has declared that he is not in the habit of losing his cool describing the incident that earned him the marching orders in Nigeria versus Chad match on Saturday in Kaduna as unfortunate and regrettable.
“That incident (of the red card) is not something I am proud of. I don’t have the reputation of losing my head on the pitch, it was an unfortunate event,” he said
Onazi, who expressed delight that the Stephen Keshi tutored side flagged off the AFCON 2017 qualifiers on victorious note, expressed optimism that the national team still nursing the pains of missing the last Africa Nations Cup in Equatorial Guinea will make proper use of every opportunity this time with a view to qualifying for Gabon 2017 in style.
“We are determined to make amends for missed opportunities,” he submitted even as he accepted criticism that were dished out by a cross section of his fans on social media following what some of them described as ‘unnecessary and preventable booking’
The former U-17 and 20 ace has so far made over 26 appearances for the senior national team with a lone goal in the kitty.
Eagles will next face Taifa Stars of Tanzania September 4 at the Multi-Purpose Stadium in Dar es Salaam. The 60,000 capacity stadium located adjacent the former national stadium (Uhuru stadium) was opened in 2007.