Chelsea Defender Of Nigerian Descent Explains Why He Opted For England

Chelsea defender of Nigerian parentage Fikayo Tomori has explained why he pledged his international allegiance to England after representing the Canadian U20 team.

Born in Calgary, Tomori skippered the Canada U20s squad that beat England 2-1 in an international friendly in March 2016, a Young Lions squad that included Nigeria target Ola Aina and Manchester United's Marcus Rashford.

“It was a tough decision because I’d spent two camps with Canada and had built relationships there, but when England came calling they had the Euros and the World Cup to come so I thought it was a good opportunity,” Tomori told thefa.com.

“Having grown up and playing in England, it was a bit easier as well so I think I made the right decision and it was one that I had to make.”

Tomori was less than a year old when his Nigerian family moved from Calgary to London, and started off his career with Riverview United in Kent before joining Chelsea.

The 19-year-old is in line to make his fifth appearance at the 2017 Fifa World Cup when England lock horns with Mexico on Monday.

Igho Kingsley

Photo Credit : fifa.com