In the 73rd minute of play between Osasuna and Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday January 17, the Basque coach decided to bring on Umar Sadiq for Andre Silva. On the face of it, it's a perfectly normal and harmless substitution. Except that the Nigerian striker, who came on at this point, was in Abidjan preparing for his team's 2nd outing at the AFCON 2023 against hosts Côte d'Ivoire on Thursday. Or in the infirmary, since Umar Sadiq, who had been selected for the continental competition, had answered the call before leaving the squad with two days to go due to a knee injury. Instead of having to undergo the surgery that was mooted when he left the squad, he was back on the pitch less than a week later.
