The head coach of the Nigeria U20 team Ladan Bosso says he has taken proactive approach towards solving his team’s problems when it comes to goal scoring ahead of the resumption of camping.

Bosso gave his team a two weeks break for the Christmas and new year celebrations after spending a month at their camp in Abuja. They will resume on the 4th of January for the second phase of camping which will involve players based abroad.

Already he has sent out invitations to ten players to be a part of the team but says he is in talks with some certain players to be sure of their availability before officially sending out invitation letters.  One among the players is Balogun Azeez of Brazilian side Sao Paulo.

” I am aware of the boy from Brazil who plays for Sao Paulo however before I can officially send out invitation. I need to be sure he will be available for the period of time. We still need reinforcement in attack and I see him as an option since he is playing”, Bosso told OwnGoalNigeria.com.

Balogun joined the Brazilian side from Ibadan based football academy Unique FC. He was initially signed on loan with an option of a five year deal based on the success of his initial loan deal. He has been a revelation for the B team so far.

Already he has trained with the first team and fans of the club seem to have taken to him by their comments on his social media handles whenever he post about his progress at the club.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has stepped up it’s drive to get more players of Nigerian descent eligible for the Super Eagles to switch allegiance to the senior national team of Nigeria.

Head coach of the Nigerian team Jose Peseiro already revealed he will speak with Atalanta defender Caleb Okoli after the World Cup but he isn’t contented with that option. He has given his blessings to the technical department of the NFF to meet with selected players.

To that effect, the technical director of the NFF Austine Eguavoen was in England yesterday to watch Crystal Palace 0-3 loss against Fulham at Selhurts Park, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal.

His visit we exclusively gathered was to meet with two players who Peseiro believe will be positive additions to his team ahead of the return to competitive football next year. Two players were spoken to by Eguavoen.

The two players are Tosin Adarabiyio of Fulham and Malcolm Eboiwei of Crystal Palace. Both players were unused substitutes during the game but did meet with the NFF technical director who was there for talks on having them start the process of switching to Nigeria.

Details of what were discussed was not made known to us as at the time of filing in this report but it is believed talks were very positive as both players should interest in teaming up with the team. We however have no details on if the duo of Ebere Eze and Michael Olise were also approached yesterday.

The duo of Olise and Eze held talks with erstwhile coach Gernot Rohr but declined to be part of the team despite Eze training with the team in 2017 and Olise getting an invitation one year ago.

As many as five players have officially received an invitation to be part of the Nigeria U20 team, when they resume in January in preparation for the U20 Africa Cup of Nations in February, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal.

Head coach of the Nigeria U20 team Ladan Bosso has plans of calling up ten players to beef up his team in areas where the team needs a lot of adjustment and competitions. He wants them to complement the Nigerian based players.

Bosso has been in camp with the players for the past one month before heading on a break for the yuletide. They will resume in January where it is expected that some or all of the foreign based players will be available to join the team.

The U20 Africa Cup of Nations will take place from 18th February to 12th March, 2023 in Egypt. The top four teams will qualify for the FIFA U20 World Cup scheduled to place in Indonesia from 20th May to 11th June next year.

Below are the list of players we can confirm have received their letter of invitation and it includes AC teen sensation Victor Eletu, who recently signed his first professional deal with the Serie A champions.

Lekan Oyedele – CD Feirense (Portugal)
Abel Ogwuche-  Trelleborgs ( Sweden)
Victor Ehuwa Eletu –  ( AC Milan)
Ahmed Abdullahi –  (Gent )
Adams Olubi – Zalgiris ( Lithuania).

Yesterday we ran a story about the coach of the Super Eagles not been paid his salaries for a period of seven months. The length of time he has been in charge of the team.

Shortly after the story went viral, we received a call from a highly placed official of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) who confirmed that the coach has received part of the salary he is owed.

In his explanation, he brought out documents to show that payments were made to the Portuguese coach in November and there is a commitment backed with dates to pay him the balance in January.

We gathered the story didn’t go down well with the coach and the NFF and we hereby tender our unreserved apology as it wasn’t our intention to cause hurt or pain to the parties, individuals mentioned in the story. Hence we have retracted the story as well.

Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman.

Nigeria was unfortunate not to make the recently concluded World Cup, losing their place to Ghana.

It would have an epic display for the ferocious likes of Victor Osihmen, Emmanuel Dennis, and Alex Iwobi. Should Nigeria have made the tournament, many would have staked on decentralized sports betting platforms like Bookmaker.xyz for Nigeria to reach the Round of 16.

While Nigeria as a nation didn’t make it, some Nigerians played at the world cup –albeit for other countries. Yes, these players, unfortunately, turned down the opportunity to play for Nigeria.

They had Nigerian ancestry but chose to represent other nations. This article discusses some of the hottest footballers in Europe who snubbed the Super Eagles.

1. Bukayo Saka

One of the hottest prospects that the super eagles missed out on is Bukayo Saka. He plays for Arsenal Football and the England National Team. Saka was born in Ealing, UK, to Nigerian parents.

Bukayo is a striker who can play all positions in the attack. He possesses excellent dribbling skills and scoring abilities, making him one of the most feared youngsters in the world. He was Arsenal’s player of the year for the 2021-22 season.

The 21-year-old came through the Arsenals youth system and played for England youth teams. Saka broke into the club’s first team in the 2019-20 season, and he’s been on an upward spiral.

He’s an integral part of Gunner’s team and has 21 goals in 111 appearances.

Internationally, Saka was eligible to play for Nigeria but didn’t think twice when the three Lions called in 2022. He’s made 24 appearances and scored seven goals for England. Saka scored three times in four games at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

2. Manuel Akanji

Manual Akanji is a talented professional footballer born to a Nigerian father and a Switzerland mother.

He plies his trade at Manchester City FC, having joined them in the summer, and is one of the club’s standout players. Akanji is a powerful defender who possesses near-perfect technical abilities.

He represented Switzerland (his country of birth) at the youth and senior levels. Having made nearly 47 appearances and represented Switzerland at prominent tournaments, including the 2018 and 2022 FIFA world cups, he’s ineligible to play for Nigeria.

Akanji played through the youth ranks at Weisendangen and FC Winterthur. He moved to Basel in April 2015 and won a couple of Swish championships before leaving for Borussia Dortmund. Akanji moved to Manchester City after his stint at Borussia Dortmund.

3. Dele Ali

Dele Alli was born in England to a Nigerian father and an English mother. He was a hot prospect when he moved to Tottenham from MK Dons.

Dele won the PFA Player of the Year and made the PFA Team of the Year in his first two seasons. He currently plays for Besiktas, on loan from Everton.

He was eligible to play for the Super Eagles through his father. However, the three Lions were quick to snap one of the best young midfielders of his generation. He made 37 appearances for England and scored three goals before falling off the pecking order.

Since the 2019-20 season, his form has dipped significantly, and he’s still trying to become the player he once was. Ali is no more eligible to play for the Super Eagles based on FIFA legislation.

He last made an appearance for England in 2019.

4. David Alaba

David Alaba is unarguably one of the best defenders of this generation. He’s made over 500 appearances in his career and has won 31 team trophies. He played most of his career (so far) at Bayern Munchen but currently plays at Real Madrid. Alaba is one of Austria’s most successful players of all time.

His international tale could’ve been different if he’d played for his country of origin, Nigeria. Alaba was born to a Nigerian father and a Visyan mother. He’s represented his country of birth at youth levels and also at the senior level.

Alaba explained that he wanted to play for his country of origin, but the Nigerian Football Federation didn’t make any formal approach.

5. Tammy Abraham

Tammy Abraham is a Chelsea football academy graduate that plays for AS Roma. He has an English mother and a Nigerian father. His career has been successful, and he won the inaugural edition of the UEFA Europa Conference League in 2021/22.

Tammy played for England’s U-18, U-19, and U-21 levels before receiving his senior call-up. Before he received an invitation to the three Lions camp, the Nigerian Football Federation president, Amaju Pinick, said Abraham agreed to play for the Super Eagles. Tammy denied the claim after his call-up.

His international career hasn’t been what he dreamt of so far, as he’s only made 11 senior appearances since his debut in 2017. He is no more eligible to play for Nigeria.

6. Fikayo Tomori

Fikayo Tomori was born in Canada to Nigerian parents but moved to England when he was one year old. Therefore, he was eligible to represent Nigeria, Canada, and England. He did represent Canada at U-20 and England at U-19, U-20, and the senior team.

However, he never played internationally at any level for Nigeria despite the NFF showing interest. Fikayo plays his football at AC Milan in the Italian Serie A.

His first appearance for the three lions was against Kosovo in a Euro 2020 qualifier. He only made three appearances before falling out of Southgate’s plans.

Despite being an integral part of the team that won the Serie A last season, the coach ignored him for the squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Numbers rarely lie. And in our situation, the numbers clearly depict a rapid adoption of mobile technologies in Nigeria.

Mobile apps are on the rise in Nigeria, most of which are accessed by smartphones. Experts project that the mobile app market in Nigeria will hit a whopping $203.90m in 2026.

Of course, the homepage on these apps is exquisitely designed for mobile responsiveness and fluid user experience.

More than 44% of Nigerians now have access to smartphones. There is no denying that this may sound outrightly discouraging when viewed from a global landscape where other developed countries are enjoying far more profuse smartphone access.

But we must be at least appreciative of the strides we have made in Nigeria, especially considering where we were some twenty years ago.

Now let us bring the message home.

How about we leverage this increased penetration of smartphone accessibility by making Nigerian football readily and remotely accessible on dedicated smartphone apps?

Yes, this promises the robust opportunity of making Nigerian football more attractive to millions of Nigerians, making it far more accessible and easy to keep up with your favorite teams in the local terrain.

Wouldn’t it be great if Nigerian football authorities put their head together with other stakeholders in the IT sector and designed an indigenous website/mobile application where players, clubs, coaches, and fans can register and interact more directly?

The opportunities are glowing.

The registered Nigerian clubs can post video adverts and calls for trials, stating the necessary details that those interested in applying would need.

This app could also be furnished with ecommerce facilities where clubs can also promote and sell their merchandise directly to their fan base.

So instead of having to physically go to Kano to get a Kano Pillars jersey, you could seamlessly order it from the ecommerce store of Kano Pillars on the app.

Of course, the goodies extend to Nigerian coaches and everyday football players as well.

The coaches can post their credentials and availability statuses, the players can post videos along with their profiles so they can be checked out by any registered member, coach or club.

The fans are spectators and they get the news of things going on in the community and can post comments and recommend players for their clubs.

In other words, they can scout for free, giving them an enhanced sense of responsibility and belonging to the local Nigerian football space.

This way, players don’t heavily rely on luck to know about trials at particular clubs or the national levels. If well developed, this app would be widely talked about and would incite people to become more curious about the league and the country’s football in general.

At a time when interest (among Nigerian football enthusiasts) is increasingly transferred from Nigerian football to European football, getting Nigerian football more into the consciousness of sports lovers couldn’t be more helpful.

People are always interested when they are a part of the process. This would also show transparency thereby sparking more belief in the system and the Federation.

Cases of match-fixing will be enormously suppressed since there is a larger spectator community now, meaning typical referee amateurishness will no longer be swept under the carpets anonymously.

Live streaming possibilities can also exist on this localized app.

It could also help to make the important matches, such as the final stages of the domestic cup competitions and the league matches that promise to be interesting, available for free live stream live on the app.

Doing this at least for the first couple of years of the project would go a long way in ramping up interest in the country’s football.

Ultimately, we have an increased decentralization of accessibility to Nigerian football. Here, fans unable to be physically present in stadiums can easily watch their favorite Nigerian sports team play in the local league.

Also, having specialized forums on this app where fans can commune online and chat can also increase the social rave about the app.

This can significantly boost time spent on the app. Fans can engage in banters on the app while anticipating their favorite fixtures. They could also have post-match analysis sessions on the app where fans can drop their technical perspectives on proceeding on Nigerian matches they watched.

Nigerian sports channels could maximize such platforms to find opinionated and vast technical pundits to bring on air and entertain their audiences.

At the end of the day, this app will boost increased transparency and participation in Nigerian local football.

Fans can always come around after weekend fixtures to enjoy highlights of jaw-dropping goals scored in the league.

This could be further promoted on more global-facing platforms like YouTube to attract international participants and scouts to local Nigerian talents.

Head coach of the U20 national team of Nigeria Ladan Bosso sat with OwnGoalNigeria.com editorial chief Mohammed Yusuf Suleiman popularly known as Mowiz and opened up on a lot of things about the team.

Bosso who is preparing the team for the U20 AFCON gave the players a break for the yuletide season after a month of camping in Abuja. The camp will reopen in the first week of next year.

Before embarking on the break, the team played  over ten friendly games including three against Nigeria Professional Football League teams in Wikki Tourist, Nasarawa United and Lobi Stars respectively. They won all but the game against Nasarawa United which ended in a 1-1 draw.

The coach speaks on the progress made so far and the areas that still requires strengthening before the start of the tournament in Egypt next year.

On The State Of The Team:

Bosso: We have won all but one of our friendly games but there is still enough room for improvement. In certain areas we still need options to bring about competition but generally we are on track.

Next Step:

We have dropped some players who were part of the WAFU team for poor performance. The ones who replaced them will also face similar fate if their level drops. Things will really hot up in January when we return for the final phase of camping.

Areas Of Concern In The Team:

Bosso: In defence we could do with two or maybe three players with experience and regular football at club level. In attack, there is still space for a free scoring forward. However while you can score a goal from several situations including own goals. In defence you must know how to do it properly, so I see it as more of a concern to me than attack for now.

Foreign Based Players:

Bosso:  I have said it repeatedly that I am open to having them in my team. However since they have not been a part of the team from the start, we have to be sure of what they will add to the team meaning they have to be better than what we have. Again, I want only those playing regularly to be considered and so far I have a list of them. They will join in January.

Players Born Abroad:

Bosso: They are Nigerians and I have them in my plans but like the foreign based players, they have to be active and better than what we have at the moment. I am not against having them in my team.

Pressure From Agents:

I am well equipped and experienced to handle it. I am a very open person but I can’t be forced to compromise my hard earned reputation over any individual.

Allegations Of Bribes:

It’s normal for people to say what they like. It won’t deter or distract me from the job of building a solid team for the U20 AFCON. It’s better to let results speak for you. That’s my focus.

Support From NFF:

Bosso: I have it 100 percent. The president of the NFF wants this team to succeed. His passion for this team is shocking and I can’t even deny how excited I am. It’s now on us to deliver.

Michael Folorunsho won’t be honouring his first senior call up to the national team of Italy extended to him by coach Roberto Mancini, Owngoalnigeria.com reports.

Folorunsho who is on loan to Italian second division side Bari from Napoli is rated among the best midfielders in the second division and was handed a spot in the list of Serie B players for a close camping of players eligible to play for Italy.

The camp in Coverciano is dedicated to players of national interest and it started today, it’s a new stage in the process undertaken last season by the FIGC to facilitate the transition from the national youth teams to the senior national team and expand the base of selectable players.

However Folorunsho who qualifies to play for Nigeria and has already had preliminary contacts with representatives of the African country won’t be part of the squad for this particular camp.

His reason isn’t connected to the fact that he is eligible for Nigeria as speculated in some quarters rather it is due to the knock he picked up while in training with Bari. He will be sidelined for a week, a huge blow for 3rd placed Bari who are strongly in contention for promotion to the Serie A.

He has played in all 17 games for Bari this season with five goals making him their joint second top scorer despite the fact that he plays in the midfield.

Nigeria international striker Victor Osimhen has reacted to rumours that the protective mask he wears is a superstitious gear aimed to help him score more goals.

This season, the forward has come to the fore with ten goals in 13 games for high flying Napoli. In the Serie A he has nine goals in 11 games and it includes seven in his last six games with Napoli holding on to their spot as league leaders.

He plays with a protective mask after a facial surgery early this year and it was meant to be for a period of time but he has stuck by it leading to talks about the mask as his good luck charm.

Speaking to II Mattino, Osimhen explained that he is wearing the mask for physical protection saying it is not a thing of superstition. He said he feels more relaxed wearing the mask owing to the severe nature of the facial surgery he had.

“The injury was heavy, like the operation and the long period in which I was out. Take off the mask? I really don’t think about it. It has nothing to do with the mental aspect, the mask is a physical protection and I keep it. It’s not a thing of superstition, I’m more relaxed like this: I protect my face better by wearing it. And I don’t take it off”, he explained.

As Nigeria get set to resume competitive international football, head coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro will also continue their process of searching for players who can extend his options in the Super Eagles.

Crystal Palace Ebere Eze is one player who has been on the radar of the senior national team of Nigeria for two years and has met with the former president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Amaju Pinnick twice in the United Kingdom.

Talks were held on having him switch his international allegiance to Nigeria but a call up to the senior national team of England made him snub the chance of commiting to Nigeria despite training with the team in 2017. That was before he had his big break at QPR.

Now a fully established midfielder in the English Premier League, Eze whose progress was derailed by a lengthy injury missed out on the cut for the recently concluded World Cup in Qatar, and if the same scenario plays out for the Euros then he will commit to Nigeria.

A source close to the camp of the player since the days of Gernot Rohr as coach told OwnGoalNigeria.com that Eze has already told people around him about his intention to finally make a decision on his international future by 2024.

It is believed that Nigeria still have their eyes on me particularly new head coach Jose Peseiro who sees him as the type of player who will help the team to play in the style that he so desires as he bids to deliver on the promise of winning the World Cup.