Super Eagles chief scout, Tunde Adelakun, has dismissed reports that football’s governing body, FIFA, has given clearance to six players with dual nationality to switch allegiance to the Nigeria Football Federation.
It was claimed that Fulham pair of Ademola Lookman and Tosin Adarabioyo, Liverpool-owned winger Sheyi Ojo, Chelsea loanee Ike Ugbo, Southampton young star Nathan Tella, PSV’s Nonso Madueke, Reading midfielder Ovie Ejaria and Hertha Berlin’s Jordan Torunarigha applied for a one-time change of association, with FIFA approving six.
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Lookman, Ejaria and Ugbo have all requested to switch nationality after representing England youth teams but FIFA has not yet approved the one-time switch, while former Arsenal trainee Tella, a player of interest to manager Gernot Rohr, is able to play for the Super Eagles straightaway as he has no cap for his country of birth, England.
When asked to confirm whether FIFA had cleared the aforementioned players, Adelakun said: “I can categorically tell you that it is not true.
“Wherever that news came from, it is false, it is not true at all, it is fake.
“Everything that you read in the report is not true, it didn’t come from us.
“I have seen all the names this morning and none of it is true – the whole piece – as it is false.
“I’m not going to pick individual names but the story in its entirety is false.”
In the same vein, the NFF media officer, Ayo Ibidapo-Obe, said he is not aware of the story.
“Don’t know anything about that story. Nothing absolutely,” he said.
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