Nigeria handed boost as Newcastle, Arsenal and Chelsea stars left out of latest England squad

The Nigeria Football Federation have received a timely boost in their efforts to recruit several English-born Premier League players following their omission from the latest England squad announced by the Football Association on Friday morning, allnigeriasoccer.com reports.

England manager Thomas Tuchel has left Jacob Murphy (Newcastle United), Tosin Adarabioyo (Chelsea) and Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal) out of his squad for next month's fixtures — a decision that could open the door for Nigeria to step up their pursuit of the players.

Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle is monitoring all three players, who are eligible to represent Nigeria through heritage.

While Murphy and Tosin had been assessed by Tuchel during Premier League matches in April and May, neither has been selected for the Three Lions' upcoming matches — a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Andorra in Barcelona on June 7, and a high-profile friendly with Senegal at the City Ground, Nottingham on June 10.

Nwaneri, 18, is widely expected to be included in the England U21 squad for the 2025 European Championship but no official announcement has been made yet.

All three players enjoyed standout 2024–2025 campaigns, with Murphy recording 23 goal involvements in 40 appearances for Newcastle, Nwaneri contributing 11 in his breakout season with Arsenal’s first team, and Tosin scoring a career-best four goals from central defense.

Of the trio, only Tosin remains uncapped at any level by England in competitive fixtures, while Murphy and Nwaneri are provisionally cap-tied to England through appearances for youth teams.

Meanwhile, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke — all of Nigerian descent — have been included in Tuchel’s squad for the June internationals.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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