The Nigeria U20 team departed Nigeria today for a training camp in Morocco from where they will connect a flight to Egypt for the U20 Africa Cup of Nations.

OGN editor in chief, Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman takes a look at the 25 players who made the trip from which 21 will be picked for the tournament. Also how coach of the team Ladan Bosso refused to bow to pressure by excluding some key players on the grounds of age discrepancies.

GOALKEEPERS: Nathaniel Nwosu (Water FC), Chijioke Anigboso (Giant Brillars), Saheed Akanbi (Adoration FC).

Verdict – As many as eight goakeepers turned up for the final phase of camping but the moment Ovie Ejeheri of Arsenal opted against honouring the invitation to be a part of the camp in favor of a loan move to Finnish side SJK Seinajoki, it became clear that the above mentioned trio will be the chosen ones.

However while Nwosu holds the title of first choice, his performance against Zambia in a 4-2 win plus the decision to hand Chijioke Anigboso the role of one of the vice captains means his spot isn’t assured.

DEFENDERS: Daniel Bamaiyi (YumYum FC), Michael Ologo (İstanbulspor ), Abel Ogwuche ( Trelleborgs FF), Solomon Agbalaka (Broad City), Augustine Njoku (Abia Warriors), Benjamin Frederick (Nasarawa United).

Verdict: One of the centre backs will have to make way when the final list of 21 players is made official. For now the understanding showed by Fredrick when he paired Bamaiyi in the second half of the 4-2 win over Zambia puts him in strong position to make the team at the expense of one of the foreign based players.

MIDFIELDERS: Daniel Daga (Dakkada FC), Onuche Ogbelu (Nasarawa United), Musa Usman, Mohammed Aminu ( Mailantarki FC), Jonathan Nicholas (Simoiben FC), Shatima Umar( Mahaniam FC), Caleb Ochedikwu (Mavlon FC), Samson Lawal (Unattached).

Verdict: The duo of Daga and Ogbule pick themselves as starters while Jonathan has the ball distribution and final pass that makes him standout from the rest. Lawal has goals in him and also the trust of the coaches. Tight call but whoever makes the cut will no doubt make the nation proud.

FORWARDS: Jude Sunday (Real Sapphire FC), Francis Ayuba (Nasarawa United), Adams Olamilekan (Remo Stars), Ahmed Abdullahi (Gent), Haliru Sarki (Maikunkele FC), Emmanuel Uchegbu (Plateau United), Ibrahim Mohammed (Mavlon FC), Kingsley James (Unattached).

Verdict: I am made to understand that two players will be dropped from the above department but for now Sarki, Abdullahi, Sunday, Olamilekan,Uchegbu are sure bet. Leaving the remaining trio to battle for two slots.

Overall Verdict: An 8/10 list by my assessment. It could have been higher but for the inclusion of Ahmed Abdullahi who wasn’t a part of the camping exercise from where I pick my ratings.

One major thing that stood out for me is the decision of the coach to leave out six players who were among the most outstanding in camp , the moment it was discovered that they had dual passports or have discrepancies in their documents. A brave move that many didn’t see coming.

High flying Burnley showed their class once again when they secure progress to the next round of the English FA Cup with a 2-1 win over Ipswich Town in a fourth round replay on Tuesday.

The win was made possible courtesy of a brace from on loan Southampton winger Nathan Tella. The brace took his goal count for the season to 11, with nine coming in the English Championship where they are runaway leaders with as many as ten points separating them from second place Sheffield United.

Tella played for England at several youth levels by around a year ago pledged his international future to the senior national team of Nigeria . He made the declaration in an interview monitored by OGN editorial team last year.

23 year old Tella was speaking on the Africa Cup of Nations held in January last year and he said playing for Nigeria will be dream come true for him. An experience he said will bring out the best in him.

“I would love to play international football,” Tella told HampshireLive in January 2022.

“That’s always been a dream of mine. If I went away with Nigeria, it would be something new and new experiences bring out the best in players.

He continued: “I’m always keeping an eye on AFCON. I’m Nigerian, so I always want to focus and watch the games”, he rounded up saying.

Back then he was a bit part player at Southampton and that made a call up difficult but that isn’t the case anymore with his performance at Burnley. A call up will however depend on the decision of the present coach of the team Jose Peseiro.

The one player who caught the eyes during the Nigeria U20 team 4-2 friendly game win against Zambia was Haliru Sarki Rilwan, he scored the opener and twice had efforts that came off the woodwork.

He was a thorn in the flesh of the Zambians with his clever foot works, pace, strengths and also passes. It came as a no surprise when he got a standing ovation when he was subbed off around 65 minutes of play.

It appears many have forgotten about him from the last U17 team of Nigeria and also that he was at the WAFU B championship where the team emerged as champions. He played in all of the games bar the last two games which he missed due to the injury.

Sarki we gathered is currently generating lot of interests from top teams in Europe and as many as six are keen on running the rule on him when the U20 AFCON gets underway. Although it could be earlier than that with representatives of some clubs already in Morocco where the team will have their final camp.

Abuja based Mahanaim Football Club have a gem on their hand and will no doubt demand a premium as his transfer fee with his room for improvement putting him in the frame for a senior national team call up in a not too distant future.

Mohammed Mowiz 

A day after losing 1-2 to Kaduna based football academy Triple O in a test game, the Nigeria U17 team suffered their second straight defeat losing 4-6 to Derby Football Academy.

The first half of the ten goal thriller ended 3-1 in favor of the Academy and they added three more goals in the second half, the same as the Nduka Ugabde led team scored in the second half.

They however secured the win on the strength of how they ended the first half. The back to back defeat has shown the technical crew that works still has to be done ahead of the start of the U17 AFCON in Algeria, the tournament is the qualifiers for the U17 World Cup.

Nigeria have won the U17 World Cup a record five times and qualified for the AFCON by emerging as champions of the WAFU B championship in Ghana last year. They defeated Burkina Faso 2-1 in the final.

The Golden Eaglets, will battle against Morocco, South Africa, and Zambia in Group B of the 2023 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations.

Mohammed Mowiz

The Nigeria U17 team who are currently in camp preparing for the Africa U17 Cup of Nations have suffered their first defeat in test games after losing 1-2 to Kaduna based football academy Triple O, OGN reports.

Before taking on Triple O, they started the day by beating Click Sports Academy of Lagos 6-0. Both games were held at the training ground of the Package B of the FIFA Goal Project in Abuja.

The second game was by far the most entertaining with Triple O matching the Nduka Ugabde led team in almost all areas of the pitch. They went into the break leading the Nigerian team 1-0.

Golden Eaglet drew level early into the second half before a penalty was awarded to the visitors. They duly converted to go 2-1 up with them minutes left to play in the game but another twist that would have brought scores to 2-2 happened at the death.

The Nigerian team were awarded a late penalty but it was missed and it meant they suffered their first defeat in test games as they fine tune preparations for the U17 AFCON in Algeria.

At the tournament the Golden Eaglets will battle against Morocco, South Africa, and Zambia in Group B of the 2023 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations. The tournament is the qualifiers for the U17 World Cup.

Mohammed Mowiz

Crystal Palace star forward Michael Olise has made it clear that he doesn’t see himself playing for Algeria in the nearest future after recent approach by the country’s FA requesting him to pledge his future to them.

Eligible for France, England, Nigeria and Algeria, Olise who is presently a youth international for France has become the case of a tug between the African countries after establishing himself as a regular at Palace this season.

The height of his performance was the freekick goal he scored at the death which earned them a 1-1 draw against Manchester United. That goal again reenforced the belief that the 21 year old is destined for big things in the future.

OGN exclusively gathered that he sees himself as a French international in the future but if it doesn’t happen before the next world cup then he will be open to playing for Nigeria and not Algeria.

” He has a certain attachment to the Nigerian team and that is why he accepted a call up to the team two years ago. He didn’t honour it due to issues and also the sack of the coach but he still has Nigeria in mind, if he doesn’t make it with the French team”, a source close to the 21 year old told OGN.

” His decision to turn down an invitation from Algeria has led to talks of them shaming him that he can’t get into the Nigerian team but I can tell you. If Nigeria come calling at the right time, he will jump at it.  Take my words”, he rounded up saying.

The coach of the Nigeria U20 team Ladan Bosso is open to the idea of tweaking his final list of players for the Africa U20 Cup of Nations in Egypt, OGN understands.

Bosso has already finalized a 25 man list from where he will pick his final squad of 21 players after the final phase of their camping exercise in Morocco. That plan has however changed slightly per what we understand.

With the team set to depart Nigeria later today if all goes according to plan, the coach is open to the idea of Ahmed Abdullahi one of the players who helped the team win the WAFU B tournament join the team in Morocco. He scored twice in Niger Republic before a head injury ended his participation in the tournament.

Abdullahi plays for the B team of Belgium side Gent and it was initially said he won’t be released for the tournament with his fitness not at it’s optimum level following a return from injury. They have now decided to give him the green light to team up with the team in Morocco.

He has played six games totalling 228 minutes this season, the last of which came in the 5-1 loss to OH Leuven. In that game he played for 18 minutes as he continues to build his way back to full fitness.

The decision to hand him a shot at making the team was taken with the coaches not entirely satisfied with the striker’s at their disposal but still want him to prove his fitness in camp before a decision will be taken on handing him a spot in the team.

Waziri Damian.

The senior international future of Folarin Balogun , the top scorer in the French Ligue 1 is one that will see Nigeria go head to head with USA and England, OGN reports.

Balogun has 14 goals for Reims, where he is on loan from English Premier League side Arsenal and currently represents England at youth level. He however admits that he is open to switching allegiance to the other two countries he is eligible for.

21 year old Balogun won’t be eligible for England at youth level in around a year time and that is when a decision on his senior international career will be made, but that can be hasten by Nigeria if those in the corridors of power act decisively.

OGN exclusively gathered that former Arsenal striker Kanu Nwankwo is one player Balogun strongly admires and he will be open to having a chat about his international future, if the former captain of the senior national team of Nigeria is involved in the talks.

Kanu is a role model to several Nigerian players abroad and his ties with Arsenal makes it even more appealing but for now he hasn’t been given the task by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to hold talks with Balogun.