The captain of the senior national team of Nigeria Ahmed Musa will be a part of the group that will hold a meeting with new Watford goalkepper Maduka Okoye on his international future with Nigeria.

Okoye hasn’t played for Nigeria since the backlash he suffered from fans for his error which led to the goal Nigeria conceded against Tunisia in the AFCON that sealed their exit from the tournament.

The goalkepper skipped the world cup qualifiers playoff against Ghana claiming he has tested positive for coronavirus. He however pull out of the sqaud for the game against Sierra Leone and Sao Tome and Principe in the AFCON 2023 qualifiers.

He said he is recuperating from a shoulder injury picked up at Sparta Rotterdam but it has since been found out that it isn’t true as he is back in training with Watford. He hasn’t even spoken with the new technical crew headed by Portuguese coach Jose Peseiro despite their attempts to contact him.

New coach Jose Peseiro will speak with him before the next international round of games with Musa who is the captain expected to be a part of it. Also the NFF will be represented. The idea is to talk him into putting all that has happened behind and forge ahead.

In his absence, Francis Uzoho hasn’t done badly and even if he decides to return to the team, he can’t be sure that he will return to his previous position as first choice of the team.

Out of favour Nigeria international defender Tyronne Ebuehi made a huge financial sacrifice in order to complete a permanent move to Italian Serie A side Empoli from Portuguese giants Benfica.

26 year old Ebuehi hasn’t find it easy since picking up an injury in pre season, few weeks after he resumed training with Benfica following his signing from Dutch side ADO Den Haag.

He spent close to two years on the treatment table, dropped a level to the U23s in order to build his fitness and confidence level. Last season where he was on loan to Venezia was his first injury free season in three years.

Venezia were relegated at the end of the season and but he already made a huge impression on coach Paolo Zanetti who is now at Empoli. The coach immediately beckoned on him to join him at his new base.

However the issue of a transfer fee was proving too difficult to navigate with Benfica still having him on their books for one more year and not willing to let him leave for free. The dilemma forced Ebuehi into forfeiting his salary for the remaining one year of his deal.

His decision made it possible for him to move on a free as his contract was terminated. He will join Empoli on a deal for the next four years hoping to work his way back to the level that made him one of the stars for Nigeria at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

As teams continue to shape up for the upcoming season by playing friendly games , so too many young players are using the moment to make a mark with the first team.

Among them is ex Bayelsa United teen sensation Okardi Inikurogha who joined French second division side Grenoble in November last year after helping unfancied Bayelsa United lift the Federation Cup.

Okardi was a part of the team that defeated Nasarawa United in the final of the Nigerian version of the FA Cup, he also starred for them in the CAF Confederation Cup the next season before his move to France.

In France he started up with the B team last season but upon turning 18 and now eligible for first team football he has been elevated to the main team ahead of the start of next season, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal.

He has already started the process of making his mark in the team as he scored the winner that handed them a 2-1 win over Ligue 1 side Auxerre in a friendly game. The 17 year old forward is tipped to play a starring role as Grenoble bid to gain promotion to the Ligue 1.

Reigning Italian Serie A champions AC Milan returned to training ahead of the defence of their league crown and also their campaign in the UEFA Champions League.

While the team awaits the superstars who helped them to lift a first Serie A for the first time in 11 years , the coach of the team Stefano Pioli decided to give some young players the chance to step up to the main team.

Among them is Joseph Eletu, a 17 year old Nigerian who joined the team around a year ago after impressing at the Viareggio youth tournament in Italy. A huge leap from U17 football for the Lagos born defensive midfielder.

Predominantly a left footed player, Eletu played 18 games in the Primavera 1, which is the U18 league in Italy but such was his talent that he was pushed up to play with the U23s at the age of 16.

Already a decision has been made on his future at the club with a five year deal on the table for him to sign once he turns 18 on the 1st of April next year. He is the younger brother to former Nigeria U20 midfielder Peter Eletu.

The FIFA World Cup is one of the most spectacular sporting events in the world. It has a global craze and billions of soccer fans will watch minute details of every match of this tournament. They are waiting for quality footage and other additional features from their broadcasters and this is what makes them more viable to watch the prestigious tournament which is why it is crucial to know the details of the broadcasting rights.

1. Fox and Telemundo

Fox and Telemundo have won FIFA World Cup live broadcasting rights till 2026. So, the 2022 FIFA World Cup is also going to be telecasted by Fox and Telemundo. These giants have made it clear that the World Cup broadcasting rights will be perfectly implemented to satisfy the soccer fans around the world and this is why it is crucial for them to properly telecast the matches with 100% accuracy and minute details. Since Fox has adequate infrastructure to telecast the matches live throughout the world, there are also a few other broadcast partners who have joined the hand to telecast the FIFA World Cup matches with 100% accuracy.

2. Bell Media for Canada

Bell Media has won broadcast rights for the FIFA World Cup and it will mainly provide the broadcast to Canada. The soccer fans in Canada will get every detail of the FIFA World Cup matches through Bell Media.

3. BBC & ITV for UK

BBC and ITV have won the broadcasting rights for the UK and the soccer fans in this country will enjoy these matches being telecasted by these two media giants. They have a longer period of experience in broadcasting live matches. So, it is expected that British soccer fans won’t miss the chance of watching these interesting matches.

4. SBS for Australia

SBS stands for Special Broadcasting Service and it has won the right to broadcast the FIFA World Cup 2022 matches in Australia. This broadcasting company has decades of experience to broadcast various sports events live and Australian soccer fans get a chance to enjoy the live matches without any glitch.

5. TV Globo for Brazil

TV Globo formerly known as Rede Globo won the broadcasting rights to telecast the live matches of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Brazil. This broadcasting company has a long period of experience in providing live streaming of sporting events. Since Brazil has millions of soccer fans, no one is going to miss the chance of watching live matches.

Since the broadcasters have technically advanced compared to the yesteryears, they are now easily telecast the matches with maximum facilities and digitalization. This is the reason; it is always a great contribution to the matches for getting the right kind of information and minute-to-minute update while the matches are being played.

The official broadcaster has the responsibility to telecast the matches with proper accuracy and transparency so that the viewers can enjoy the match without any additional glitches. Due to its popularity, almost every part of the world is going to watch the spectacular performance of the soccer teams.

Spanish news outlet AS Dario says Nigeria international forward Victor Osimhen is high on the priority list of Bayern Munich, if they cave in to the demand of their top striker Robert Lewandoski who wants out of the club.

Lewandoski hasn’t hidden his desire to join Barcelona but three bids have been rejected for him per reports as Bayern continue to insist that the 34 year old who has one year to go is not for sale.

However AS Dario claim they will be open to letting him go if they are able to raise the amount Napoli are demanding for the transfer of the Nigerian, which is in excess of €110 million.

Bayern are looking to get €50 million from the sale of Lewandoski and also save a further €20 million from his salary. They hope to raise the rest from the potential sale of Serge Gnabry who is rated at around €30 million.

It will take their expected fund for the deal to around the €100 million mark Napoli want for the striker. The reports further claim that they have already initiated talks with the camp of the Nigerian.

Osimhen is contracted to Napoli till the summer of 2025.

Dutch league giants Ajax begin life after the exit of their last season top scorer in Sebastien Haller and also their coach Erik ten Haag by taking on Paderborn in a pre season game.

Ajax lost the game 2-5 with new manager Alfred Schreuder giving opportunities to several young players which includes little known Nigerian forward Jay Ifeanyi-Junior Enem.

The 19 year old was among several young players handed a chance to impress the new manager following his introduction in the second half. Last season he was playing for the U18 team Jong Ajax.

He joined Ajax youth team from AZ Alkmaar at the age of 14 years old and has progressed from the U17 to the U18 before stepping up to the U21, and now the first team although it’s still pre season with most of the regulars yet to return.

Former captain of the senior national team of Nigeria John Obi Mikel has given a word of advice to the incumbent coach of the team Jose Peseiro on how to get the team back to its best.

Mikel quit international football in 2019 after the Africa Cup of Nations where the team won bronze and has since seen the team fail to build on that achievement the past two years.

Nigeria had their worst Africa Cup of Nations performance in over 40 years when they crash out of the round of 16 losing 0-1 to Tunisia. Their case was made worst when they lost out on a spot in the World Cup by losing on away goals to Ghana.

That failure led to the sack of Austine Eguavoen with Jose Peseiro named as his replacement. Peseiro has started on a sound note by winning his first two competitive games 2-1 against Sierra Leone and 10-0 away to Sao Tome and Principe all in the qualifiers for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

In the words of Mikel, the team still has quality players and called on Peseiro to limit the amount of new players called up to the team in order to build a strong core of players.

“I do believe in the abilities of most of the players in the camp now. They have the strength, they are fast and talented. All  we need to do is to find a way to ensure they all work together as a unit with the likes of Joe Aribo, Alex Iwobi, Kelechi Iheanacho and Samuel Chukwueze playing for one another. And one more thing I need to say, we need to find a group and when you find the group, you start working with the group and then you start adding others to make a team but in the past few years what we have been doing is adding almost 10 fresh players for every match and the experiment has been unending”, he said.

” Unfortunately, we don’t have a core group but we keep experimenting instead injecting some of the domestic league players with the core group”, he rounded up.

As Nigeria continue the search for more options in goal following the decision of first choice goalkepper Maduka Okoye to take a break from the team, an option appears to be on the horizon.

Former Nigeria U17 goalkepper Daniel Jinadu is expected to sign for English League Two side Carlisle after a successful period on trial following his release by League one side Barnsley.

Jinadu was in goal for the Nigeria U17 team at the 2019 U17 world cup as a player of West Ham. He made the step up to the U23 and signed a professional deal with the club but two years later he was axed.

He spent last year at Barnsley but wasn’t handed an extension after the expiration of his one year deal. He is widely expected to sign for Carlisle as a senior player according to several reports in the English media.

If he ends up establishing himself as first choice of the senior team, he will no doubt be an option to the senior national team of Nigeria under Jose Peseiro and considering his age, he won’t do bad as an understudy to any of the goalkeppers ahead of him at the moment.

Former Germany U21 defender Jordan Torunarigha says he is open to having a discussion with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on committing his senior international future to Nigeria.

Jordan in 2018 turned down the chance to be a part of the Nigerian team who were then preparing for the World Cup as he wanted to focus on making the step up from the youth ranks of Germany.

He has since then played for Germany at U21 and U23 level making the inroad from the U15, U18, U19 and U20. The senior team should naturally be his next target but the son of former Nigeria junior international Ojokojo Torunarigha has other ideas.

Back from a successful loan spell at Belgium side Gent, Torunarigha who is linked with a possible move to English Premier League side West Ham said he is at an age where he has to consider his international future.

” I met with the ex coach of the Nigerian team Gernot Rohr and said I will make a decision after the Olympics. He is no longer in charge but if they contact me, we will talk about it. I’m at an age where youth football isn’t possible anymore. I want to enjoy senior football so I will be open to hearing from Nigeria”, the 24 year old told OwnGoalNigeria.com in an exclusive chat.