Cercle Brugge of Belgium attacker, Ike Ugbo has commenced the process that will enable him change national team allegiance and play for Nigeria at full senior level, as the lad on loan from Chelsea of England aims to cement his international future with his father’s country.
Megasportsarena.com gathered that, although Ugbo has played for England at youth team levels, he is now thinking of a embarking on a different prospect at senior level, hence his decision to commence the process of officially committing his international future to Nigeria.
This follows his initial contacts with top shots of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), when he held talks with some of the officials during the Super Eagles’ camping at Crowne Plaza Hotel in Ealing, London before their pre-2018 World Cup friendly with Serbia.
Ugbo used that opportunity to express his interest of playing for the Eagles, and he has now gone ahead to firm up that desire by embarking on moves that will help him formalize the switch of his international future with Nigeria, though he also qualifies to represent his mother’s country, France and the land of his birth, England.
It is a bold step being taken by Ugbo, who has been in tremendous form over the last 16 months, during which the former ADO Den Haag of Holland attacker has scored 21 goals across the most recent couple of seasons in Belgium, first with Roda JC Kerkrade and now at Cercle Brugge.
A report by alnigeriasoccer.com added: “The 22-year-old feels he’s more connected to Nigeria than France and England because many of his friends are Nigerians and the rest have African background.
“The Cercle Brugge star started the process of filing a one-time change of association which is necessary as he previously played competitive matches for England U17 national team, and he’s hoping the paperwork is completed before Nigeria’s AFCON qualifiers with Benin and Lesotho.
“The Nigerian Federation managed to convince and cap-tie the likes of Alex Iwobi, Ola Aina, Victor Moses and Shola Ameobi after they featured for England youth teams and Ugbo is set to follow suit.”
