Youth national team, Flying Eagles head coach, Paul Aigbogun has taken a leaf from the style of Super Eagles technical adviser, Gernot Rohr, in calling up players of Nigerian origin who were born abroad.
With Rohr having made a success of such recruitments with Tyronne Ebuehi, Bryan Idowu and Ola Aina, after consolidating on the earlier arrivals of Carl Onuoha Ikeme, Leon Aderemi Balogun and William Troost-Ekong, Aigbogun is now following suit with the under-20 squad.
Aigbogun confirmed as much, as he disclosed that he recently held talks with players of Nigerian descent when he visited England last month and urged them to switch their national team allegiances.
The Enyimba of Aba coach, who disclosed that he was in England to renew his papers as a British citizen, said he met with some youth team players of various top clubs, who are eligible to feature for his side.
Aigbogun, who is in Mauritania for the first leg tie of the 2019 African U-20 Nations Cup final round of qualifiers, said positive talks were held with players of Nigerian descent while he was in England.
He recounted: “I met a couple of players who are eligible for England and also Nigeria. They are within the age limit require for my team and we had positive talks about a switch of allegiance to Nigeria.
“They are willing to play for Nigeria and some of them would have been in my squad for the Mauritania game but it’s pre-season time and most of them will be involved with the first team.
“Aside playing for the youth teams of top clubs in England, they have what we think we lack at that moment in the team but that doesn’t mean an automatic shirt for them. They have to come here and slug it out with the lads we have in camp.”
