Skipper Mikel Obi has said the driving force behind his return to the Super Eagles is to win a second AFCON crown with a team dominated by debutants at this level of the tournament.
“The target is to win the AFCON again with this young team,” he declared at a press briefing in Asaba.
“From the team that last won it (in 2013) only Omeruo, Ahmed Musa and I remain.”
The youthfulness of the team going to Egypt has been illustrated by 19-year-old Samuel Chukwueze, who admitted his dream was always to play alongside the likes of Mikel and Ahmed Musa, who as a young boy he watched them play at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil on television.
Former Chelsea midfielder Mikel will also explain that even though he battled injuries at his Chinese club last year, he stayed away from the Eagles after the World Cup in Russia to take a deserved break from international football.
“I have played at this level for 14, 15 years and I needed a rest,” he said.
“I had a good conversation with the coach for me to take time off and hopefully when we get to the Nations Cup, I will come back and that’s what happened.”
Rohr said the team are happy to have their captain back.
“The players are happy to see him back, but all the time we have been in touch,” he assured.
