Kelechi Nwakali, a Super Eagles midfielder, has disclosed why his contract with Spanish second-tier club SD Huesca was cancelled.
On Tuesday, the Spanish club stated that it had parted ways with the 23-year-old, but gave no rationale for their decision.
"The contractual relationship maintained by the first team player Kelechi Nwakali with the Barca organization has been dissolved," the club said in a statement.
"The club has informed the player of its intention to terminate the contract that brought them together for the current season but was set to end in June 2022."
SD Huesca wishes Nwakali the best in his professional future.”
However, in a lengthy statement on his verified Twitter handle on Wednesday, the former Nigeria U17 captain accused the club of unfair treatment, leading to his departure.
According to the former Arsenal and FC Porto star, he has been under immense pressure since December 2021 when he was called up to join the Super Eagles Africa Cup of Nations squad.
Nwakali claimed that Huesca threatened not to play him again if he joined the continental tournament because it was not deemed an ‘important tournament.’
The midfielder also accused the club of owning him some unpaid wages, adding that the club tried forcing him to ‘sign mutual termination papers’ and froze him out of the team before he involved Spanish Footballers Union (The AFE).
“It comes with huge regret that I am writing this message after SD Huesca announced the termination of my contract. I have kept silent out of respect for the Huesca fans and my teammates, but I will no longer suffer in silence,” read the statement.
“The time has come for people to know the truth and why these past few months have been awful for me and my family. In Dec 2021, I experienced the biggest honour of my life after I received a full international call-up for my beloved Nigeria.
“But the joy of this moment quickly came crashing down when the club’s Sporting Director, Ruben Garcia, put extreme pressure on me not to go to AFCON due to it ‘not being an important tournament! He told me that if go to AFCON I will not play for Huesca again.
“This behaviour and the lack of respect shown to my country Nigeria was truly heart-breaking and it was just the latest example of the club attempting to bully me into getting their own way.
