I played through pains at the AFCON – Troost-Ekong

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Super Eagles defender William Troost-Ekong has disclosed he played with painkillers during the 2023 AFCON held in Ivory Coast earlier this year.

Ekong sustained an injury in the second group encounter against Ivory Coast. However, he managed to play all the matches except the third group game against Guinea-Bissau.

The lanky player, while speaking to CNN Sports, revealed he had to play with painkillers. He also said he needed to observe a few minutes of training.

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“I had a torn bicep femoris, which is basically the outside part of the hamstring,” Ekong recounted.

“It happened during the tournament and I think I had a small tear initially in the second group stage game against Cote d’Ivoire. I managed to play on and then after the final I had another MRI, and we realised it was really ruptured.

“It was very sore playing with it, and I couldn’t really train after the second group game. I was just trying ice to keep the swelling down.

“I might do half an hour of training the day before each game, and then during the game, a combination of painkillers and adrenaline means you can get through it. The day after each game it was showing as I was struggling to walk”, he added.

Troost-Ekong scored thrice during the AFCON 2023 tournament, including twice against hosts Cotê D’Ivoire. He scored the only goal as Nigeria beat the Elephants 1-0 in the group stages. The PAOK Thessaloniki player also scored in the final as the Super Eagles lost 2-1 against the same opponents.