'Corrupt, cancerous and shameless' - Nsue blasts Equatorial Guinea Federation
Equatorial Guinea did well at the Africa Cup of Nations, advancing from Group A ahead of Ivory Coast and Nigeria to the knockout stage, where it fell to Guinea. However, the sporting success was overshadowed by the subsequent suspension of Nsue and midfielder Iban Salvador, who was dropped from the national team due to an "unpleasant incident" in Abidjan that required police intervention and delayed the team's return to Equatorial Guinea. The federation said the strict measures were taken to maintain discipline and the team's reputation.
However, the federation did not disclose details of the incidents that led to the suspension of Nsue and Salvador. The "unpleasant incident" involving El Salvador reportedly took place on January 29th, a day after Equatorial Guinea's 0-1 defeat to Guinea, when an altercation was said to have broken out over the theft of 500 euros from the hotel where the team was staying.
However, the national team captain Nsue took to his Instagram on Thursday night to Friday, dismissing all the accusations and calling the officials corrupt illiterates and thieves. He accused the entire federation of corruption, theft and fraud. He cited as an example that its officials, including its president Venancio Tomas Ndong, kept a bonus of one million euros meant for players during the previous Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon in 2021.
Nsue also accused the federation of forging vaccination cards for this year's Africa Cup and linked the team's physiotherapist, Elias Nzo, to stealing national team equipment for personal gain. The former Real Sociedad, Middlesbrough and Birmingham player vowed to fight corruption, saying: "It's either you or us. We will go all the way. Corrupt, cancerous and shameless. You just want to put your people everywhere who don't work and get paid. You are a bunch of corrupt liars and thieves."
He complained, among other things, that the players had no clothes ready before the match against Nigeria. "The outfit used by the national team is paid for by the players, not the federation. The federation has threatened some local footballers that it will take money from their salaries but I said that was outrageous and unfair. And they humiliated me and fired me for it. The national team is above everything and everybody," Nsue concluded.