WOW! Mark Hughes Happy Over Nigeria's AFCON Miss

Stoke City manager, Mark Hughes is happy at Nigeria’s absence at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations taking place in Equatorial Guinea. The defending champion’s failure to reach the tournament meant that Victor Moses will be available for the Potters after returning to full fitness since late November with a thigh injury and Hughes describes it as a ‘bonus’ for the team.

The 24-year-old striker for 86 minutes as Stoke got a 1-0 win at Leicester City on Saturday as they stay 10th on the log.


"Before his injury he was arguably our best player so it is fair to say I did jump for joy it was a bonus for us.

"It is unfortunate for Nigeria but sometimes you have to be a bit single minded, Hughes told Dailystar.co.uk.

"We kept Victor back last week because he had only been with us for three or four days, and we didn't want to put him at risk.

"He came here and tore the place up really, when he first came in before his injury.

"It is a difficult injury and you have to be mindful of them and it can come back, he continued.

"He's look strong and sharp in training and he's looking forward to playing again. I think we all are looking forward to it because prior to his injury he was playing really well.

"The key for Victor was to come to a club where he could get opportunities to show what he can do and we've given him that platform.

"He's grasped it with both hands and played exceptionally well so there's no reason to think he won't do that quickly again.

"He didn't get a pre-season but he hit the ground running so maybe that will be the case again, he concluded..