OGC Nice midfielder Mario Lemina was supposed to feature for Gabon in the Africa Cup of Nations. Instead, heart complications after contracting COVID-19 have forced the midfielder to retire from international football aged 28 and he has been released by his national team.
Following his decision, media speculation suggested that the health reason was simply a cover for his exit as he had been drunk over the weekend and had been behaving unprofessionally. However, the former Juventus midfielder took to Instagram to denounce these rumours quickly.
“I will not give oxygen to the lies that seek to harm me. I have nothing to do with that. I feel bad for my national team to be surrounded only liars in search of clicks. Good luck to you for the competition and for the future challenges. Now out of sight but close to my heart.
By wanting too much to solve the problems around the national team, you are the one who puts yourself in harm’s way. Because all this wickedness has been in place for years. There is nothing more to be done… I definitively withdraw from the national team,”
he wrote.
Lemina is not the only player to get an early release from the Africa Cup of Nations. Gabon captain and Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was also diagnosed with heart lesions. He had tested positive for COVID-19 along with Lemina just a few days before their first match in the international tournament.
However, their recovery hasn’t gone well as they were diagnosed with heart complications by the Confederation of African Football medical officials. As a result, both players have been released and have been allowed to return to their clubs in order to find a solution. Aubameyang and Lemina have already left Cameroon.
Even if the choice was tough, as it severely weakens the Gabon squad, coach Patrice Neveu feels it was necessary:
“There are no big alarms regarding their heart problem. However, we are not able to evaluate the seriousness of what caused this [heart] inflammation. So, we cannot take any risk. Moreover, the psychological aspect becomes unbearable for them. Yesterday we talked about it and we decided to make them go back.”
Lemina’s teammate Axel Meye also backed this decision:
“The fact that they are going back to their clubs, I think it’s the best solution because I was also in their situation,” he added.
