Welcome to Joeonpoint: England wins Under 20 World Cup – with Nigerian ki...

Welcome to Joeonpoint: England wins Under 20 World Cup – with Nigerian ki...: Ojo, Solanke & Lookman        Photo: Daily Mail Dominic Solanke. Ademola Lookman. Seyi Ojo. Fikayo Tomori. Ovie Ejaria. Joshua Onom...

England wins Under 20 World Cup – with Nigerian kids

Ojo, Solanke & Lookman        Photo: Daily Mail

Dominic Solanke. Ademola Lookman. Seyi Ojo. Fikayo Tomori. Ovie Ejaria. Joshua Onomah

You would be pardoned if you thought these are names of Nigerian football players. Yes, they have Nigerian heritage all right but they are playing for England. And they have just helped that country win the FIFA Under 20 World Cup – the first trophy England has won since lifting the World Cup on home soil in 1966.

After 51 long years, England has finally been able to lift a trophy in football, thanks to Nigeria’s exports. Ironically, the U-20 World Cup is the only age-grade tournament Nigeria has failed to win, reaching the finals two times – in 1985 and 2005. The country has won the U-17 World Cup a record five times. It also won the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics.  

England defeated Venezuela 1-0 in a pulsating final. To reach the final, the Young Lions had come tops in a group that included Argentina, Guinea and hosts South Korea. They then defeated Costa Rica, Mexico and Italy in the knockout stages to set up the grand finale against Venezuela. Six teenagers with Nigerian heritage made this happen.

Dominic Ayodele Solanke, the son of a Nigerian father and a German mother, has been in devastating form, scoring four goals to emerge second highest scorer in the tournament.

In 2015, when he was just 17, Solanke was named England Youth Player of the Year. The Reading-born striker signed a professional contract in September 2014 with Chelsea and made his professional debut a month later in the Champions League match against NK Maribor. This made him the club’s youngest ever player to feature in the Champions League.

In spite of his undoubted talent, Solanke failed to cement a place in the star-studded Chelsea first team, spending last season on loan at Vitesse Arnhem of Holland. Due to a lack of playing time at Stamford Bridge, he has decided to try his fortunes elsewhere, bagging a contract worth £20,000 a week at Liverpool.

The 2016-17 season was a breakout season for Ademola Lookman Olajade. The 19-year-old signed for Everton from Charlton Athletic for £7.5 million in January 2017. In his first game for Everton, Lookman came on as a substitute against Manchester City in the 90^th minute and scored a wonderful goal with his first touch of the ball. What a way to introduce yourself to the world!

The tricky winger, who scored a brace to help England defeat Costa Rica 2-1 in the round of 16, is also a brilliant student. He got five As in his General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) exam.

After holding talks with the NFF, Ademola decided to snub the Super Eagles, preferring to run with the Three Lions.

Oluwasheyi Babajide Ojo came on as a sub in the semi-final against Italy and immediately changed the game with an impressive display. He scored the second goal in the 3-1 defeat of the highly rated Italians.

The powerful and energetic winger joined Liverpool at the age of 14 and spent time on loan with Wigan Athletic and Wolves. He made his competitive debut for Liverpool in January 2016 in the FA Cup match against Exeter City.

A fracture on his back kept him sidelined and he didn’t return to first team training till November. So far he has played eight matches for the Reds. A player for the future, he could be used as an impact sub in the next season as Liverpool returns to the Champions League.

Ojo, who has played for England since U-16, has been approached by the NFF to feature for Nigeria. So far, the Federation has not succeeded in luring him “home.”

Fikayo Tomori (full name Oluwafikayomi Oluwadamilola Tomori) was born in Alberta, Canada. This also enables to play for Canada as well as Nigeria. In March 2016 he captained Canada’s U-20 team to a 2-1 victory over England but switched to the England U-19 team just two months later. And now he is a part of the history-making England U-20 team.

He joined Chelsea at under-8 level and has since progressed in the club’s youth system, helping the London club to win the UEFA Youth League and the FA Youth League in 2015 and 2016.

He made his professional debut for the Blues on May 15, 2016 in the 1-1 draw against Leicester City. It was the last game of the season. On August 1, 2016 the versatile defender signed a new four-year deal with Chelsea. A few months later, in January 2017, he joined championship side Brighton & Hove Albion on loan and helped them gain promotion to the Premier League.

Joshua Oghenetega Onomah is another player of Nigerian heritage who is making history for England. The midfielder, who was born in Enfield, came through the academy system of Tottenham Hotspurs and was first called up for the first team in January 2015. He made his Premier League debut on November 2, 2015 in the 3-1 defeat of Aston Villa. He replaced Dele Alli, another English player with Nigerian heritage, in the last minute of the game. A month later, he featured in the Champions League match against AS Monaco, playing all 90 minutes. So far, he has featured 10 times for Spurs.

Although he had earlier represented England at U-17 and U-19 levels, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) is said to be pushing hard for him to have a change of heart and feature for the Super Eagles. But so far, Josh is happy to represent the country of his birth.

Oviemuno Dominic Ejaria is another promising midfielder who was born to Nigerian parents. The 19-year-old played for Arsenal’s junior teams for nine years before signing for Liverpool in 2014. His first competitive call up for Liverpool came on September 16, 2016 in a Premier League match against Chelsea. He was an unused substitute but four days later he made his first team debut in a League Cup match against Derby Country, replacing Roberto Firmino in the second half.

A month later, on October 25, he made his first start in the League Cup game against Spurs then appeared in a Premier League game in the 6-1 thrashing of Watford on November 6, 2016.

In 2013, Ovie trained with Nigeria’s U-17 team, the Golden Eaglets and stated that he is ready to play for Nigeria. However, a call up from the English U-20 team made him change his mind. However, the NFF is still hopeful of taking advantage of the youngster’s patriotic zeal.