As the coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Jose Peseiro continues his drive to get players born abroad pledge their allegiance to the senior national team of Nigeria, he is particularly keen on getting more options in defence, OwnGoalNigeria.com understands.
Peseiro has his sights on Atalanta defender Caleb Okoli and he openly admitted last year that he will meet with the 22 year old, who is presently a junior international for the Italian team.
Still eligible for Nigeria because he hasn’t made his senior international bow for the Italian senior team, the agent of the U21 of Italy defender says the temptation of switching to Nigeria is heavy on the mind of the defender.
” When a young player is talked about by the senior national team coach of a country like Nigeria, then it’s only natural that it gets to the player in question. Yes the temptation is there but for now the idea is to continue doing what has brought him thus far”, his representative told OwnGoalNigeria.com.
Last season, Okoli made 17 league appearances for Atalanta in the Serie A and going into this season, he will be pushing to nail a permanent spot in the team. At national level his last game came for the U21 of Italy when they lost 0-1 to Norway in the UEFA U21 European Championship.
Osas Mahawi