Rangers midfielder Joe Aribo was involved in a bizarre substitution on Tuesday as Nigeria slipped up against lowly Sierra Leone for the second time in a week.
There are 88 places between the two sides in the FIFA World Rankings but the Super Eagles collapsed spectacularly in a 4-4 draw in Benin City on Friday before being held to a 0-0 draw by the same opposition in Freetown four days later.
Aribo and fellow Rangers star Leon Balogun started Tuesday’s clash after the latter overcame an injury scare from the first match.
They were joined in the team by Leicester City striker, Kelechi Iheanacho, and Everton’s Alex Iwobi, but despite the forward line fashioning a number of opportunities in both halves, they were unable to find a breakthrough.
Some fans questioned manager, Gernot Rohr’s decision to deploy Aribo in a deep-lying position, which limited his ability to contribute to attacks.
His most controversial decision involving the Gers star was yet to come, though.
With less than ten minutes remaining and his side searching for a goal, Rohr opted to bring Aribo off and replace him with West Brom centre-back, Semi Ajayi.
The decision perplexed supporters, who couldn’t understand the manager’s negative approach against such low-ranking opponents.
After no chances of note were created by either side in the closing stages, the game petered out into a draw.
The point was enough to ensure that Nigeria remain top of qualifying Group L, but after dropping four points during this international block, Rohr is very much a man under pressure.
Receive a digest of our best Rangers content each week direct to your mailbox
