Stephen Keshi says he spoke with midfielder before dropping him

Super Eagles coach has backtracked on his claims that he was unable to speak with John Obi Mikel before excluding him from the 2017 African Cup of Nations qualifiers against Chad this weekend.

Keshi previously claimed that Chelsea midfielder, undefined to him naming the Super Eagles squad for the game against Chad.

undefined, Olga Diyachenko.

Keshi has however refuted his former statement, saying that he discussed with Mikel before leaving him out of the squad for the upcoming AFCON qualifers.

"I don’t have problem with Mikel. I spoke with him before i invited his co players for this game. We don’t need him at this moment. In September we might need his services if he is available," the 'Big Boss' said in a media parley.