How Mikel Obi played against Argentina knowing his father had been kidnapped that afternoon and would be shot if he said anything to authorities…

Imagine getting that call four hours to kickoff and not being able to tell anyone, but trying to find the mental toughness to not let your country down…

But the former Chelsea star added that he could not tell anyone because the abductors warned him that his father would be killed immediately authorities know about the incident…

Mikel stressed that he was in a devastating mood when the kidnappers called him four hours into the Group D tie between Nigeria and Argentina which the Super Eagles lost 1-2…

His father was on his way to a funeral in south eastern Nigeria from Jos when he was abducted along the Makurdi-Enugu expressway on June 26…

Mikel explained further that the kidnappers demanded the sum of N10 Million ($28,000 US) for the safe return of his father Pa Michael Obi…

“I was confused and I did not know what to do, but in the end I knew that I could not let 180 million Nigerians down.
“I had to shut it out of my head and go and represent my country first. I was told that they would shoot my dad instantly if I reported to the authorities or told anybody.

“And I did not want to discuss it with the coach because I did not want my issue to become a distraction to the coach or the rest of the team on the day of such an important game. So as much as I wanted to discuss it with the coach, I could not do it.” Mikel explained according to ESPN…