Team captain Ikouwem Utin and forwards, Yahaya Nazifi and Effiom Maxwell are among twenty-one players listed by Nigeria’s under twenty male team for the Africa Under twenty Cup of Nations in Niger Republic.
Flying Eagles Utin, a wingback with Enyimba International Football Club of Aba, won a silver medal at the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN) in Morocco.
Nazifi recently signed contract with a Danish club, while Maxwell was Man-of-the-Match in the 4-2 defeat of Ghana’s Black Satellites at the WAFU Under-20 Cup Tournament in Togo last month.
Aigbogun has also included goalkeepers Detan Ogundare, Akpan Udoh and Olawale Oremade, as well as defender Mike Zaruma, midfielders Peter Eletu, Quadri Liameed and Aniekeme Okon, and forwards Adeshina Gata and Ibrahim Abubakar.
Defender Valentine Ozonwafor, who also play for Enyimba, midfielder Jamil Muhammad of Kano Pillars and Oasis FC forward, Ibrahim Aliyu have also been included in the Nigeria squad.
The seven-time African champions will be buoyed by three foreign-based professionals, Igoh Ogbu of Rosenburg FC of Norway, Afeez Aremu of IK Stat FC, also in Norway, and Denmark-based Nazifi.
The list has been submitted to the Confederation of African Football (CAF). Nigeria takes on Burundi’s Junior Itamba in their first match of the 2019 Africa Under twenty Cup of Nations on February second at the Stade General Seyni Kountche.
This will be hours after Niger Republic’s Junior Mena would have fought it out with South Africa’s Amajita in the competition’s opening match at the same venue.
The Flying Eagles will then face South Africa on February fifth, before tangling with Niger Republic on February eight in their final match of the group phase.
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