Martins Injured or AWOL For Nigeria?

Newcastle United striker Obafemi Martins has narrowly missed disciplinary action from Nigerian coach Shaibu Amodu after he missed Nigeria's friendly against Austria last week and has confirmed he will not be available to play tomorrow against South Africa in the 2010 World Cup/African Cup Qualifier in Abuja.

Amodu said:

"There won't be any action against Obafemi Martins yet. He called to be excused citing an injury and we have to respect the fact that he made it known to us; I cannot discipline a player I have not seen.

Whenever he makes himself available, we will assess the situation and talk one-on-one, as this is no time to discipline any player. I understand the disappointment expressed by the media and fans, but is too soon to jump into conclusions."

Martins was attacked in the Nigerian media this week for failing to attend the midweek match when he was seen at a wedding in Lagos instead. It isn't the first time Martins has gone AWOL citing an injury. In May 2007 Martins failed to turn up at Vicarage Road to face Watford claiming he was injured, despite the medical staff finding no injury or grounds for absence, fuelling speculation he was unhappy at the club.

This time round Martins agent/advisor Chris Nathaniel justified his clients absence confirming an injury to the ankle.

Nathanial said:

"First of all, I would like to say that Obafemi takes his country's assignments very seriously. He is very patriotic and is proud to be Nigerian.

He actually had ankle injuries which he managed to play the last matches of his club season with the aid of pain killers. In order not to aggravate the injuries, he had to see a doctor on time and right now he is in Italy for a check-up to determine the extent of the ankle injuries."

When asked abouthis clients appearance in Lagos he said:

"Obafemi and I made attempts to inform the NFA officially, despite the fact that his injuries have been widely reported in newspapers. Nigeria coach Shaibu Amodu did not communicate with the player and he also found it difficult to get across to the coach before the Austria friendly. They do not have his contact addresses, telephones, e-mails and the rest. Martins should not be blamed for Amodu's inability to get his correct contact details.

I think it is the duty of the staff of the NFA to make sure they have the details of all the players playing for the nation. And if they had done that, then the coach would be able to get in contact with Obafemi without any problem. I don't think anybody can blame the player for that."

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