We recently told you about Everton youngster, Ademola Lookman, who is the subject of a row between the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) and the English FA over which country he will represent in his international career.
Thesheet.ng brings you a list of six youngsters who have turned down the country to play for another land. Read on…
currently in the Unlike Super Eagles defenders Leon Balogun and Troost Ekong, there is a long list of football players with Nigerian blood, who chose to play for countries — some as far-flung as Haiti, Indonesia and Singapore — other than Nigeria. While many of them bear easily recognisable Nigerian names, others like Everton and England midfielder Ross Barkley have names that makes it difficult to guess their Nigerian roots.
1. DAVID ALABA
Born in Austria to George and Gina Alaba, Alaba is a native of Ogere-Remo in Ogun state. He started his career in the youth team of Bayern munich, went on loan to Hoffenhaim and came back to Bayern munich where he is currently experiencing his fifth senior season with the club. Alaba currently plays for the Austrian national team, not because he wanted to, but because he never got the chance. He says, ” I wanted to play for Nigeria but i must confess there was no formal approach for me, I was excited because of my dad, he was a fan of Sunday Oliseh when he was playing for Cologne. As a kid, I loved to watch Victor Agali in the Jersey of Hansa Rostock”.
KARLSRUHE, GERMANY – JANUARY 16: David Alaba of Muenchen reacts prior to a friendly match between Karlsruher SC and FC Bayern Muenchen at Wildpark Stadium on January 16, 2016 in Karlsruhe, Germany. (Photo by Alex Grimm/Bongarts/Getty Images)
David Alaba. Photo Credit: Alex Grimm/Bongarts/Getty Images
Had Alaba been handed a call up by the late Yemi Tella to play for Nigeria at the then u-17 world cup in 2007, the rest would have been history right now. “I got the news that Nigeria would only be considering those based in the country, perhaps because of travelling logistics and that was the end”. What a painful miss this has been.
David Alaba. Photo Credit: Alex Grimm/Bongarts/Getty Images
Had Alaba been handed a call up by the late Yemi Tella to play for Nigeria at the then u-17 world cup in 2007, the rest would have been history right now. “I got the news that Nigeria would only be considering those based in the country, perhaps because of travelling logistics and that was the end”. What a painful miss this has been.
2. DELE ALLI
Born in Milton Keynes to Kenny and Dennis Alli, he started his football career by signing for MK Dons when he was just 11 years old and has risen through the ranks. He then got signed by Tottenham on the 2nd of Febuary 2015 for £5 million and has gone on to be an integral part of the Tottenham squad this season.
LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 17: Dele Alli of England celebrates scores his team’s first goal during the International Friendly match between England and France at Wembley Stadium on November 17, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)
Dele Alli of England celebrates scores his team’s first goal during the International Friendly match between England and France at Wembley Stadium on November 17, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)
His contributions has not gone unnoticed as he had both Nigeria and England scrambling for him to commit his international career, but he ended up turning down Nigeria to represent his country of birth and made his debut in October 2015,coming on as a substitute for Ross Barkley against Estonia. In missing out on Dele Alli, Nigeria has lost a dynamic midfielder wit the the ability to play all across the midfield.
Dele Alli of England celebrates scores his team’s first goal during the International Friendly match between England and France at Wembley Stadium on November 17, 2015 in London, England. (Photo by Paul Gilham/Getty Images)
His contributions has not gone unnoticed as he had both Nigeria and England scrambling for him to commit his international career, but he ended up turning down Nigeria to represent his country of birth and made his debut in October 2015,coming on as a substitute for Ross Barkley against Estonia. In missing out on Dele Alli, Nigeria has lost a dynamic midfielder wit the the ability to play all across the midfield.
3. ROSS BARKLEY
Did you know that Ross Barkley’s father is a Nigerian? How come he doesnt bear a Nigerian Name?. Well, here is the reason. His parents got divorced when he was still a little boy, he was then raised by his mum. His dad’s name is Peter Effang, his mum’s name is Dianne Ross, he however adopted his mother’s name when he grew up. This has obviously gone on to be a big miss for Nigeria.
4. ANGELO OGBONNA
Ogbonna was born to Nigerian parents who emigrated to italy from Nigeria in 1988. He started his career in Cassino and then moved to Torino in 2002 where he played till 2013. He was signed by Juventus in July 2013 where he found playing time hard to come by before moving to Westham with a fee worth $11m in July 2015 where he’s now gone on to be an integral part of their squad.
Angelo Ogbonna
He made his Italian senior debut in November 2011,playing in the 2-0 win over Polland in a friendly. Do you know that Ogbonna cannot speak English and is struggling to cope with life in Westham due to language barrier. We do not care though, Ogbonna would have been an integral part of the super eagles defence, talk is better done on the pitch. The Super Eagles is bereaft of strong, powerful defenders right now and Ogbonna would also have been a leader, marshalling the backline from conceding goals.
He made his Italian senior debut in November 2011,playing in the 2-0 win over Polland in a friendly. Do you know that Ogbonna cannot speak English and is struggling to cope with life in Westham due to language barrier. We do not care though, Ogbonna would have been an integral part of the super eagles defence, talk is better done on the pitch. The Super Eagles is bereaft of strong, powerful defenders right now and Ogbonna would also have been a leader, marshalling the backline from conceding goals.
5. Jordon Ibe
Jordon ‘hybe’ as popularly called in the Uk is another Nigerian football star who has committed his international career to the England National team. He started his career at Charlton at a young age in 2003, then moved to Wycombe Wanderers in 2007 and then to Liverpool in 2012. He is known to be a very impressive winger with dynamic power, pace, control and can take on players on one-on-one situations, something the super eagles lack right now as Musa, Moses and the other wingers hasn’t shown real quality in the super eagles jersey. There was real efforts made by ex-super eagles coach Sunday Oliseh to get Ibe to commit to Nigeria. Although he hasn’t made his senior debut, Jordan Ibe officially ended speculation about his allegiance by committing to England on the 13th of September 2015, a news that has been a big blow for Nigeria.
6. TIAGO ILORI
tiago-ilori-4-640x400Liverpool youngster Tiago Ilori hails from a cosmopolitan background, having been born in England with a Nigerian father and Portuguese mother. His full names are Tiago Abiola Delfim Almeida Ilori. He lived in the Iberian country for more than a decade and considers himself Portuguese.
Born in Austria to George and Gina Alaba, Alaba is a native of Ogere-Remo in Ogun state. He started his career in the youth team of Bayern munich, went on loan to Hoffenhaim and came back to Bayern munich where he is currently experiencing his fifth senior season with the club. Alaba currently plays for the Austrian national team, not because he wanted to, but because he never got the chance. He says, ” I wanted to play for Nigeria but i must confess there was no formal approach for me, I was excited because of my dad, he was a fan of Sunday Oliseh when he was playing for Cologne. As a kid, I loved to watch Victor Agali in the Jersey of Hansa Rostock”.
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