Glasgow Rangers striker Cyriel Dessers is feeling the sting of being left out when Nigeria's most crucial matches come around, despite being a consistent performer for the Super Eagles when called upon.
Despite his goals in friendly games - which now include the recent opener against Ghana and key assist in Nigeria's 2025 Unity Cup Final triumph against Jamaica - the 30-year-old has yet to feature in an official competitive match for the Super Eagles since his debut in 2020.
"It hurts sometimes. It feels disappointing," the forward said in an interview with ModZero Sports.
"I've been in and around the squad for five years now, and I haven't played an official game yet - just friendlies. I am going to say that hurts."
Dessers made his Nigeria debut in a 1-1 friendly draw against Tunisia in October 2020, scoring his first international goal in another friendly against Algeria just days later. Since then, he has netted four times in seven appearances for Nigeria - all in non-competitive fixtures.
His latest contributions came in the 2025 Unity Cup, where he once again proved his worth. Dessers scored the decisive goal in Nigeria's 2-1 victory over Ghana, continuing his habit of tormenting the Black Stars.
He then played a crucial role in the final against Jamaica, providing the assist for Moses Simon's goal as the Super Eagles lifted the trophy at Brentford's Gtech Community Stadium.
At club level, Dessers has also been in strong form. After a solid 2022/23 season with Cremonese in Serie A, where he scored seven goals despite the club's relegation, he moved to Rangers in Scotland. There, he netted 22 goals in his debut season, helping the club secure the Scottish Cup and reach the Europa League final.
His returns this past season has been even better. The forward scored 29 goals in 55 appearances for Rangers, earning the Scottish Premiership Golden Boot, yet his national team opportunities remain frustratingly limited.
Dessers acknowledges that the depth of Nigeria's attacking talent has been a factor, but admitted his disappointment at being overlooked for competitive matches, including the last two Africa Cup of Nations tournaments where he felt his form warranted selection.
"There are always a lot of different factors," he said. "You have a few strikers, for example Victor Osimhen who is the clear number one, and it always depends on form, on choices, on personal opinion.
"But I would say the two Afcons I missed out on really hurt because I felt like at that time with my form I had a place in the squad. But it's a big country, there's a lot of competition, we have a lot of good strikers.
"I am not making the choices, the only thing I can do is perform, score my goals at my club, show that I am ready and when called up, show what I can do for the team and how I can help the team with goals and also with hard work and dedication."
Beyond just scoring, Dessers has chalked up three assists for Nigeria, including the latest one in the Unity Cup final against Jamaica, further highlighting his ability to contribute to the team that struggles to score despite a proliferation of attacking talent.
He is counting on that resilience silence the doubters: "What helped me get to this point is that I love the game - training, playing, working hard. Even when people doubt you, whether it's a coach, manager, press, or fans, you just keep going. At the end, you'll get your reward."
This time, Dessers is hoping that that reward will be a call up to Nigeria's squad for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers which roll back around in September, as the Super Eagles look to rescue their floundering qualifying hopes.
He said: "I'm hoping to get a call up in September, I will do everything to get a call up in September and finally get the chance to play an official game, meet the fans and make one of my dreams come true."