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Rising Bayern Munich left back Richard Ajayi will not be part of the Nigeria U23 squad for the upcoming camp ahead of the start of preparations for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Nigeria has missed two consecutive editions of the Olympic football event and wants to stop the losing streak, hence the decision to appoint the coach of the senior team, Eric Chelle, to lead the team.
Chelle has already drawn up a list of players for the task in the qualifiers starting in November, and among the names he has on his list is 16-year-old Ajayi, who is ranked among the German team’s best young players.
He moved up to the under-19 level over the winter and has firmly established himself as the team’s starting left back despite his tender age. Given this and his promotion to the Under-17 level when he was 14, Ajayi has a propensity to play at a higher level than expected for his age.
In pre-season he has tried first-team action and didn’t look out of place. The Nigerian is yet another youth talent that Bayern fans can follow with some interest, and his international future is likely to spark debate in the near future after he turned down an invitation to be part of the Nigeria Under-23 team.
We can exclusively reveal that Ajayi spoke to Chelle and explained that his current status in Germany, where he moved to due to the war in Ukraine, means he will not be able to fulfill the calling.
However, he promises to inform the coach as soon as the German authorities clarify his situation.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
