Two Siblings On The Books of Chelsea Center Of Three-Way Battle Between Nigeria, Poland, England

Published: March 28, 2019

Ashley Akpan and Ashanti Akpan are at the center of a three-way battle between the Nigeria Football Federation, English Football Association and Polish Football Association over their international future.

As it stands, the Polish Football Association are ahead of their Nigerian and English counterparts in the race for the Akpans, having made the first move to cap the duo, according to respected Polish journalist Marcin Dobosz of Polish sports daily Przeglad Sportowy.

Born to a Polish mother and Nigerian father in Warsaw, Ashley Akpan is a right back who plays for Chelsea youth team and his younger sister Ashanti, who is a central midfielder, also represents Chelsea.

''Both Ashley and Ashanti were born in Poland to a Polish mother and Nigerian father. Ashley's second given name is Polish "Antoni",'' said Dobosz to allnigeriasoccer.com.

''Ashley is clever and has good technique as everyone can see on their YouTube channel "Sis and Bro Pro".

''I do think they are both are on the radar of the Polish FA from the very beginning. They speak Polish fluently, were invited to the yearly meeting in the Polish Embassy, organized by both the Embassy and the Polish FA.

''They both attended youth National Team camps. Ashley has recently entered the age when he can earn his first youth international cap for Poland U15 for players born in 2004.

''He wasn't invited to play, though, as he hasn't matured physically yet, he's still a kid.''

Ashley Akpan represented Kosa Konstancin, founded by Poland legend Roman Kosecki, who starred for Legia, Galatasaray, Atletico Madrid among others, before he was snapped up by Chelsea.

The Golden Eaglets coaches are monitoring the progress of the defender with a view to a call-up to the squad ahead of the 2021 FIFA U17 World Cup.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

Photo Credit : wemakefootballers.com