Mikel’s brother accuses Ifeanyi Ubah of assault

Ebele Obi

Ebele Obi, the older brother of Super Eagles captain, John Obi Mikel, has accused owner of FC IfeanyiUbah, Dr Ifeanyi Ubah, of assaulting him after a match at the Rojenny International Stadium on Wednesday.

Ebele, 30, who plays for Heartland FC as a goalkeeper, travelled with the Nazi Billionaires to face IfeanyiUbah in a Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) encounter.

The home side were 1-0 victors thanks to a penalty by Brazilian import, William da Silva, after Nelson Ogbonnaya was adjudged to have brought down Bright Onyedikachi in the penalty box.

But the game was marred by post-match fracas involving both teams with Ebele and Ubah at the thick of things.

Ebele narrates his ordeal to a local radio station on Friday, saying he was attacked by the politician and his security details soon after he approached the referee to complain of biased officiating.

“The referee booked me during the game. I was mad at him and after the game, I went to him to complain about his bad officiating along with my players,” lamented the Heartland goalie.

“He said he will report me to the NFF and then he gave me a red card. I did not raise a finger at him, but he still fell down as if I had hit him.

“The owner of IfeanyiUbah then rushed on to the pitch and he punched me on the face and I fell down, his security men then continued to beat me, our second goalkeeper and our captain.”

He added: “I had to rush to our supporters for safety. I don’t know what has become of Nigerian football, but I’m so disappointed, seriously.”

According to reports, the former Mighty Jest and Rangers goalkeeper was rushed to the hospital due to the injuries sustained in the scuffle.

A spokesperson for the Nnewi-based club however denied claims that Ubah assaulted the complainant.

“There was no way my chairman would have attacked anybody. He came on to the pitch to intervene.

“Rather, I was personally attacked by a drunk Heartland player.”