Chelsea Defender Aina Stays Loyal To England As Mikel Fails In Attempt To Lure Him To Super Eagles

Chelsea defender Ola Aina has declined to represent Nigeria internationally for the time being after he was approached by Super Eagles skipper John Obi Mikel.

London-born Aina, who has been hailed as one of the most gifted talents at Stamford Bridge,  has rejected the overtures of Mikel in order to pursue his ambition of playing for England at senior level instead, having represented their youth teams.

Allnigeriasoccer.com first broke the news that  individuals close to the Nigeria Football Federation and Sports Ministry had approached Aina regarding committing his international future to the Super Eagles and his feedback was negative.

Speaking to goal.com, Mikel said : “If he wants to play, we would have to speak to the federation and make sure that he really wants to play for Nigeria.

“If he is ready, we can talk about, but in the few times we have talked about it, he hasn’t given me a very positive, decisive answer to take back to the FA.

“I need a positive answer for me to take the case forward to the FA. We will see what happens.”

The 19-year-old Aina, who made his first-team debut for Chelsea in the new season, has caps for England U16, 17, U18, U19 and U20 national teams.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

Photo Credit : chelseafc.com