William Troost-Ekong was heavily criticized for his performance for club and country in the weeks leading up to the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, so much so that he deleted his social media accounts.

The Watford defender is beginning to prove his doubters wrong with some solid displays in the heart of the Super Eagles defence.

Having come close to finding the net against Sudan, Troost-Ekong has now scored in back-to-back Africa Cup of Nations tournaments after his clinching goal in the 75th minute in the 2-0 win over Guinea-Bissau.

The 28-year-old was recognized for his outstanding display against the African Wild Dog, earning the official Man of the Match award for his efforts.

Troost-Ekong pointed out that the biggest message from the win against Guinea-Bissau was the so-called fringe players in the squad performing well, with Eguavoen opting to rest eight of his starters.

On winning the Man of the Match award, Troost-Ekong said at the post-match press conference : "First and foremost I am very happy for the team.

"We said before the game we wanted to do something special, we wanted to get three out of three wins and to really make a statement on the tournament so far.

"I'm really proud of the boys, I think everybody performed exceptionally well. It wasn't easy with eight changes and all the boys who came in I think they showed they deserve to play as well and that's probably the biggest message from today's game so I'm very content".