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Leicester City CB remains eligible for Super Eagles despite benching

Posted : 10 September 2024

Leicester City’s central defender Caleb Okoli remains eligible to represent the Super Eagles despite being a non-playing substitute for Italy in their 2-1 victory over Israel during a UEFA Nations League match at Bozsik Aréna in Budapest on Monday night.


If Okoli had played, even briefly, he would have been permanently bound to Italy. His eligibility for the Super Eagles stems from his Nigerian heritage, as both of his parents, Paul and Tina Okoli, moved to Italy in 1996.


Having been an unused substitute in Italy's recent match against France, Okoli had another opportunity to make his debut in the game against Israel. However, manager Luciano Spalletti's decision to bring on Mateo Retegui and Mattia Zaccagni in the 86th minute prevented Okoli from making his debut in September 2024.


Since transferring from Atalanta to Leicester City in the summer, Okoli has had limited playing time. He missed the first two Premier League games but featured in matches against Tranmere Rovers and Aston Villa.


In Spalletti’s lineup, Okoli is currently behind central defenders like Alessandro Bastoni, Alessandro Buongiorno, Federico Gatti, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, and Riccardo Calafiori for the September internationals.


During his time as coach of the Nigeria national team, Jose Peseiro expressed interest in Okoli. Peseiro assigned Ademola Lookman the task of persuading Okoli to commit his international career to Nigeria.


Okoli was provisionally tied to Italy in November 2019 when he made his debut against Malta in a European U19 Championship qualifier.

 

 

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