New signing at Stoke City of England, Oghenekaro Etebo looks good to start for the Super Eagles in Saturday’s World Cup group opener against Croatia, following his spirited efforts in training with the Nigerian team.
Since the Eagles’ arrival at their Russia 2018 camp base in Essenthuki, Etebo has stepped up his performances with the team, such that the former Warri Wolves battler appears set to get a spot in the starting line-up against Croatia in Kaliningrad.
It also means Etebo has pushed Eagles’ vice-captain, Eddy Ogenyi Onazi out of the starting line up, following his string of impressive displays alongside the duo of Wilfred Onyinyen Ndidi and John Mikel Obi in midfield.
The need to close the Croatian in the middle is another factor that played in his favour as he can also press and he uses the ball better than Onazi, who despite his ability to close down opponents hardly make good use of the ball.
Thursday’s training further cemented Etebo’s spot in the team ahead of Saturday’s game as he was not just lively in attack, he also aided his team in defending during the course of the session which lasted a little over two hours.
