Nigerian coach hands Chelsea U18s debuts to son of Super Eagles' 1994 World Cup star and Subuloye

Chelsea U18s Nigerian coach Hassan Sulaiman handed full debuts to two players of Nigerian descent as his side registered a hard-fought 2-0 win over Aston Villa in an U18 Premier League fixture at Cobham Training Center on Saturday afternoon. 

Schoolboys Landon Emenalo and Tayo Subuloye made their first competitive appearances for Chelsea at U18 level.

Landon  is the son of former Chelsea technical director and retired Nigeria international Michael Emenalo, who shone for the Super Eagles at the 1994 World Cup as cover for the injured Benedict Iroha. 

Chinonso Chibueze, another player of Nigerian descent, made a cameo appearance as a substitute in the closing minutes of the game.

The match remained deadlocked at halftime, but Chelsea opened the scoring in the 73rd minute courtesy of Donnell McNeilly, with Tyrique George providing the crucial assist.

Shaun Wade sealed the victory with a composed finish in the 88th minute, securing the three points for Chelsea.

Subuloye captained Chelsea to victory at the U16 Premier League National Championships four months ago and was promoted to first team training in February. 

Emenalo has also been invited to train with the first team this season and has already made his debut for the development squad, coming off the bench for the last thirteen minutes of a 4-1 rout of Colchester United in the Premier League Cup on January 22, 2024.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

Photo Credit: chelseafc.com

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