FIFS U-20 World Cup: Obuh Drops Key Players

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There are strong indications that the Flying Eagles’ coach, John Obuh, has dropped three of his keey players after they failed to beat his arrival deadline to the team’s training camp in Portugal.

Kickoffnigeria.com reports that the trio of skipper Ramon Azeez, Stanley Okoro and Mohammed Goyi Aliyu may not make the list of the Flying Eagles for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia, as Obuh set to release the list of the team for the tournament today.

Chief Media Officer of Nigeria Football Federation, Ademola Olajire, revealed yesterday that Azeez, Okoro and Aliyu, failed to secure entry visas and will not arrive for residential training in Faro before today’s announcement of the final list of 21 for the World Cup, which kicks off on 29 July, while Obuh has made clear to whoever cares to listen that he will not risk naming players whose form and fitness cannot be guaranteed.

“The dimunitive coach has ruled out long-time regulars Ramon Azeez, Stanley Okoro and Mohammed Goyi Aliyu who failed to arrive for residential training in Faro before Friday’s announcement of the final list of 21,” Olajire said.

The NFF, however, has absolved itself of the failure of the players to get visas to join the Flying Eagles in Portugal.

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“We told them to make sure that their passports were made available before the team’s trip to Portugal but we didn’t get them. So the federation had to go ahead with the ones available,” said the Acting General Secretary of the NFF, Musa Amadu

The Flying Eagles are scheduled to leave for Panama today ahead of a Four-Nation Invitational tournament.

On Monday, the team take on Panama’s U-20 side, before further matches against Portugal and Mexico on Wednesday and Friday respectively.

The team will fly out of Panama City straight to Armenia (venue of their first two Group D games) on Sunday, July 24, where they will stay at the Hotel Campestre Las Camelias.

Nigerians will have to stay awake till the early hours to watch the Flying Eagles matches, with their earliest game coming against Guatemala at 10p.m. Nigeria time on 31 July.

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