SC Heerenveen Block Eredivisie Best Dribbler From Representing Nigeria At U23 AFCON; Lillestrom's Matthew Also Contacted

Published: November 01, 2019

Allnigeriasoccer.com understands that Dutch Eredivisie side SC Heerenveen blocked exciting winger Chidera Ejike from representing Nigeria at the upcoming U23 Africa Cup of Nations.

The former Liverpool trialist received an official invitation from the Nigeria Football Federation to join the Dream Team VII but Heerenveen argued that the U23 AFCON was to be held on a date outside the coordinated international match calendar.

Ejike has sparkled since his transfer to SC Heerenveen in July 2019 so much so that fans have been clamoring for his inclusion on the Super Eagles roster.

According to data from OPTA as reported by Voetbal International, Ejike is the most active and successful dribbler of the Eredivisie with 78 dribble actions deployed after eleven rounds.

The 21-year-old has tallied 5 goals from 12 appearances across all competitions after moving to the Netherlands.

Another player that would have made the Nigeria U23s Africa Cup of Nations roster is Lillestrom midfielder Ifeanyi Matthew but the Norwegian top-flight refused to release him to the Nigeria Football Federation because they have several important league matches in November.

In truth, Lillestrom have got a point there as they are not safe from relegation yet with only four matches to the end of the 2019 season.

Fifteen foreign-based professionals headlined by Azubuike Okechukwu and Liverpool-owned striker Taiwo Awoniyi have been included on Nigeria's 21-man roster for the U23 AFCON.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

Photo Credit : sc-heerenveen.nl