Head coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Eric Chelle has made plans to reach out to five players born abroad and eligible to play for other countries to pledge their allegiance to his team, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal.
The coach has already started plans for the second phase of his rebuilding process of the Nigerian team, after leading them to a third place finish at the last AFCON with an impressive brand of football admired by all.
Chelle is now preparing for the next stage with emphasis on improving the depth of his team, as the start of the qualifiers for the next AFCON draws near.
So far he has succeeded in securing Wrexham goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo who has agreed to switch from England to Nigeria. This season in the English Championship he has made a total of 28 appearances behind the sticks, 1 in the FA Cup and also two games in the Carabao Cup.
He is now in prime position to push for the number one spot of Nigeria with first choice Stanley Nwabali currently without a club, after mutually terminating his deal with Chippa United.
Progress has also been made with Carney Chukwuemeka of Borussia Dortmund, who also has the option of playing for Canada but for now he is more sold out on switching to Nigeria, from his current position as a youth international for England.
Sources close to Chelle revealed that over the weekend he scouted Genoa centre back Alessandro Marcandalli in their 2-3 loss to Napoli. He is keen on the 23 year old to bolster his options in defence.
Also Rangers of Scotland defender Emmanuel Fernandez has caught the eyes of Chelle with his impressive performances, that recently saw him win another player of the month award. The 24 year old is Chelle’s surest option ahead of the next international fixture.
Gibson Yah of Dutch side Volendam is high on the list of priority of Chelle as an option in the midfield, but he is currently out injured hence an immediate call up is not an option at the moment.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
