John Obi Mikel has revealed he played against Argentina in the crucial World Cup group finale just hours after being informed his father had been kidnapped by armed bandits.
Pa Michael Obi was on his way to a funeral when bandits, posing as police, took him and the Nigeria international received a call saying his father would be shot if he told anyone.
With the Super Eagles still in a position to qualify for the knock-out stages, Mikel told the Sun that he kept the harrowing news to himself.
"I was emotionally distraught but had to make a decision about whether I was mentally ready to play the game," he told the paper.
"I was confused. I did not know what to do, but in the end I knew that I could not let 180 million Nigerians down."
A 2-1 defeat to Argentina put paid to their World Cup ambitions, but the former Chelsea midfielder had much bigger concerns back in his homeland to contend with.
After six days in captivity, police eventually rescued the pensioner, amid reports in Nigeria of a gunfire between the authorities and the captors.
It was the second time Mikel senior had been kidnapped after he was taken and beaten by bandits in 2011.
