Super Eagles vice-captain, William Troost-Ekong, has revealed that he nearly quit international football a few weeks before the start of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
Troost-Ekong was ignored by Peseiro in the build up to the competition.
The 30-year-old was not invited for the double-header friendlies against Saudi Arabia and Mozambique last November.
The centre-back was also benched in the team’s previous outing against Sao Tome and Principe in October.
“[It] resulted in us not actually speaking for a few months,” Troost-Ekong told CNN World Sport.
“That was the time when my pride and ego, I think, got the better of me. I thought about stopping.
“Thankfully, I’ve got a good group of people around me who took me out of it.
“[It] made me think about my younger self and how much it meant and how proud I was to play my first game [for Nigeria].
“I deserved to give my younger self a better ending. So that was the thing that changed my mind … I think my career has always been a testament of not giving up.”
Troost-Ekong featured in six of Nigeria’s seven games at the AFCON 2023 finals.
He scored three goals and was named Player of the Tournament.
Troost-Ekong reveals row with Peseiro nearly mar AFCON 2023 dreams
