Augsburg manager Jess Thorup has said he was surprised by Nigeria’s decision to leave out Frank Onyeka from the squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe last month.
Onyeka was initially named in an enlarged provisional squad by head coach, Eric Chelle.
The midfielder was however omitted from the final 23-man squad despite featuring regularly for his club.
Thorup said it is important for the former FC Midtylland player to keep working hard despite his omission.
“Yeah, I think he (Onyeka) has played an amazing season in one of the top leagues in Europe. I was really surprised (that he was not called up to Nigeria’s squad),” Thorup was quoted by Oma Sports.
“I was sure that Frank was going to be part of it, I was even hoping he would be in the lineup and play form the beginning.
“We were all surprised, but that was the decision from the coach. Frank can only keep performing the way he’s performing and hope he will be called up next time.”
