Super Eagles defender Elderson Echiejile has refuted claims of him being a dirty player following his sending off in Sporting Braga's 2-1 loss at Estoril last Friday.
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Nigeria international Elderson first saw red after two bookings this season when he was sent off in February in a 3-2 home win over Vitoria Guimaraes before he was giving the marching order in the 84th minute for a late tackle.
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"I'm not a dirty player," the former Stade Rennes defender told said.
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"Football is a contact sport and I went for the ball with the right intentions," he added.
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Elderson who was a part of the Eagles AFCON winning squad will miss Braga's next three games.
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They remain in fourth place on the league table with 46 points from 27 matches, but are three points outside the bracket for a UEFA Champions League qualifying spot.
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Echiejile further added that the loss of Emmanuel Emenike for the fort-coming 2014 World Cup qualifier against Kenya and Namibia is a huge blow but believes other strikers are also capable of scoring for the team.
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"Nobody loves been injured,"
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"I feel for him because he's an important player for the team but I believe other strikers are capable of scoring as well," he concluded.
People should stop pucking their noses in the poor guy's career. He made a mistake and that should be behind everyone already