NIGERIA

Newly appointed Portuguese Benfica coach Marco Silva has handed over a first-team spot to 19-year-old Nigerian striker Peter Edokpolor for the start of pre-season training, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports. Fresh from signing a two-year extension to his stay at the club, Silva, who replaced Jose Mourinho, will use the pre-season matches to impose the rule on the Nigerian youngster. Signed from an …

United States President Donald Trump emphasized that American military operations were instrumental in stopping the widespread killing of Christians in Nigeria, and said that America’s decisive action significantly weakened those behind the violence. Trump made the remarks Friday at an event in Washington, where he highlighted his administration’s security initiatives and counterterrorism operations in various parts of the world. Speaking …

Banik Ostrava defender Abdullahi Bewene has revealed the secret behind his impressive debut for the Nigerian senior team in the recent friendlies against Poland and Portugal respectively, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports. Coach Eric Chelle handed the 22-year-old a late ball to the Nigerian senior team for the matches, after a series of withdrawals left the team without a recognized right-back. Bewene made …

Nigeria senior national team coach Eric Chelle is aiming to convince England under-21 international Ethan Nwaneri to change his nationality to Nigeria, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports. Nwaneri spent the second half of last season on loan at French Ligue 1 side Marseille but is back at Arsenal, where a decision on his future will be made before the close of the summer …

Nigerian international striker Akor Adams says there is no truth to reports that he has agreed terms on his summer transfer to newly promoted Italian Serie A side Venezia, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports. According to reports in the Italian press and some select Nigerian media, he has agreed the terms of a transfer with a transfer fee to be agreed with Sevilla, …

After the Super Eagles failed to qualify for the World Cup for the second consecutive time, the Nigerian team needs to look forward again. The Nigerian team has been blessed with a lot of talent, but there is still a lot of untapped potential in players with Nigerian eligibility. One such case is current England Under-21 player Ethan Nwaneri. Nwaneri …

Newly promoted to the English Premier League, Coventry City are close to announcing the signing of another Nigerian ahead of their campaign next season, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal. In January, Frank Lampard’s side signed Nigerian international midfielder Frank Onyeka on loan from Brentford, and he was key in ensuring they maintained the momentum that led to automatic promotion from the …

Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate’s decision to join Real Madrid has opened the door for one of the team’s young youth centre-backs to get a chance in the first team, reports OwnGoalNigeria.com. New coach Andoni Iraola will take advantage of the preseason training camp to evaluate the young defenders in the team’s youth system, before making a final decision on the …

New AC Milan coach Ruben Amorim will hand Nigerian international winger Samuel Chukwueze a new role at full-back next season if he remains at the club, OwnGoalNigeria.com can exclusively reveal. Chukwueze spent all of last season on loan to Fulham of the English Premier League, and the English team has the option of making the deal permanent, but a final …

Newly capped Nigerian international winger, Femi Azeez, is interested in a move to the English Premiership after missing out on promotion with Championship side Millwall, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports. Azeez made his international debut for Nigeria in the Unity Cup and made an instant impression with a brace in the 2-0 semi-final against Zimbabwe and an assist in the 3-0 win against …