Juwon Oshaniwa: Echiejile's absence challenged me

The Super Eagles defender has said his brilliant performance at the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil was due to the fact he needed to confound the critics who claimed he would fail

Nigeria international Juwon Oshaniwa has revealed that his gleaming performance at the 2014 Fifa World Cup was in response to the barrage of criticism that trailed his inclusion in the 23-man list.
Oshaniwa eventually became the Super Eagles’ first choice in the left-back position in Brazil following injury to AS Monaco’s Elderson Echiejile, which ruled him out of the tournament.
The 23-year-old played all four matches as Nigeria reached the second round for the first time in 16 years.
He stated that self-belief was responsible for his commendable performance as responsibility beckoned on him following Echiejile’s blackout.
"It feels good and also a great achievement putting smiles on the faces of critics. Well, I felt so bad that my friend [Echiejile] was ruled out of the competition despite his contributions to the team’s qualification for the tournament,” Oshaniwa told Goal.
"Knowing that responsibility of replacing him beckoned on me, I had to put myself together, take charge to put smiles on the faces of Nigerians."
The Ashdod of Israel star also revealed that he is not in a hurry to move to another club not unmindful of several offers coming from other European clubs.
"For every player on earth, there is always a desire for a greener pasture and I can tell you that mine is not an exception.

"I have set some targets for myself which I am working towards achieving because I'm sure the future is very bright for me.

"Sure, I have received some offers from other clubs and that I won’t disclose until everything materializes.

“Right now, I'm with my parents to share some moments with them and also to receive their blessings before preparing for the new league season,” he concluded.