Alex Iwobi, a midfielder for the Super Eagles of Nigeria, is the focus of a wave of online harassment. The team’s captain has spoken out against it.
Some football fans turned to social media trolling after Nigeria’s 1-2 loss to Ivory Coast in Sunday’s Afcon final, blaming the 27-year-old player for the loss.
Iwobi played for 79 minutes of the game before Alhassan Yusuf replaced him. He did, however, take down his Instagram pictures on Monday due to the negative comments he received there.
In response to the cyberbullying, Iwobi was defended by Super Eagles captain Ahmed Musa and other Nigerians, who condemned the targeted assaults and emphasized that it is unfair to single him out for the team’s defeat.
Musa called his supporters to stop harassing Iwobi online in a statement that was uploaded on X. “Sure, losing a game is hard, but it’s unfair and wrong to point the finger at one individual for the team’s problems. As a team, we both succeed and fail. Like every other player on our team, Alex gave it his all on the pitch,” Musa highlighted.
