Nigeria Skipper JOHN OBI MIKEL says Nigeria were denied “a clear penalty” after Marcos Rojo handballed before scoring Argentina’s dramatic late winner.
The Super Eagles had levelled Lionel Messi’s opener thanks to a spot-kick from Victor Moses and were heading through into the World Cup last-16 with a point
They could have had the chance to seal their spot in the knockouts before a controversial late moment.
Manchester United defender Rojo rose inside Argentina’s area and headed the ball against his own arm.
That led to huge protests from the Nigerian players and the ref to consult with VAR.
The match officials waved away protests and ordered play to continue, with Rojo going on to grab a massive 86th-minute winner.
But Nigeria captain Mikel refused to let the issue lie after the full time whistle when his nation’s World Cup hopes were ended, telling reporters: “It was a clear penalty for me.
“If you look at the Portugal game yesterday, this wasn’t close to that. This was worse. We have seen it again in the dressing room. It was a clear handball.”
Mikel was man the leading the discussions with ref Cuneyt Cakir, who he believes had been informed the ball struck Rojo’s head first, but the ex-Chelsea star claims to have received no suitable explanation as to why a spot kick was not awarded.
The 31-year-old said: “The referee looked at the VAR. He said it hit the hand. I asked why he didn’t give the penalty, but he said he didn’t know.”