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New Everton midfielder Tim Iroegbunam’s international future lies with the Nigeria senior team, not England, according to a source close to the 21-year-old, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Last season was supposed to be his breakthrough in the Premier League. After a successful loan spell at Championship side Queens Park Rangers, he had been tipped for a bigger role at Villa Park. That January, manager Unai Emery decided to keep Iroegbunam ahead of experienced Belgian international Leander Dendoncker and spoke of his “belief” in the youngster’s potential.
But the decisive final step never materialised, and Iroegbunam finished the campaign with just one Premier League start and nine appearances in total.
Disappointment was the reason he quickly decided to join Everton in a deal worth £9m in transfer fee, while winger Lewis Dobbin headed in the opposite direction in a separate deal aimed at improving the financial situation of both sides.
His real name is Timothy Emeka Iroegbunam. He is an England under-21 international and has qualified for the senior Nigeria squad because his parents are of Nigerian descent. His senior international future lies more with the African team than with England, according to one of his close associates.
“Tim will play for Nigeria because we had that conversation when he was at QPR last season and he made no secret of it, but he cannot be called up. If the message comes from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), I can tell you it will be a yes. For now, his aim is to make a strong entrance into the Everton starting XI after a very good performance in pre-season,” he said.
Mohamed Mowiz Suleiman
