Arsenal add twelve Nigerian players to Champions League squad before opener against Atalanta 

Premier League giants Arsenal have added twelve Nigerian players to their Champions League squad ahead of their opener against Atalanta at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo.

The Nigerian players have been included on the B List, consisting of players born on or after 1 January 2003 and have since their 15th birthday, been eligible to play for Arsenal for any uninterrupted period of two years.

The players of Nigerian descent in question are goalkeepers Brian Okonkwo and Khari Ranson, defenders Josh Nichols, Cam'ron Ismail, Joshua Ogunnaike and Samuel Chinedu, midfielders Ethan Nwaneri, Zac Shuaib, Andre Annous and  Ifeoluwa Ibrahim, strikers Nathan Butler-Oyedeji and Daniel Oyetunde. 

The B List features academy products and homegrown youngsters from Arsenal, all aged 21 or under.

Nwaneri and Butler-Oyedeji trained with Arsenal's first team at Sobha Realty Training Centre in London Colney on Wednesday, September 18, and traveled with the first team after the session, meaning they are both in contention to be included in the matchday squad to face Atalanta.

Of the aforementioned U21 players of Nigerian descent, only Nwaneri and Butler-Oyedeji have been called up to a first team game in the past.

While Butler-Oyedeji was a non-playing substitute against Newcastle United and Oxford United last year, Nwaneri has appeared in three first team games off the bench, most recently in the north London derby at Tottenham Hotspur.

Last season, Nwaneri was an unused substitute in back-to-back Champions League games against Lens, PSV Eindhoven and Porto.

Khari Ranson, Josh Nichols, Ife Ibrahim and Cam'ron Ismail have been named in Arsenal's UEFA Youth League squad.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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