Former Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick says Eberechi Eze’s decision not to represent the Super Eagles came despite advanced talks and a clear affection for the country.
Eze, who now plays for Arsenal, was eligible to represent Nigeria during his early career and trained with the Super Eagles during a camp in London in 2017 while he was still at Queens Park Rangers.
Speaking on The Playzone and Dangolo Way podcast, Pinnick said Nigeria believed the midfielder was close to committing his international future before he opted to wait for an opportunity with England.
“Eberechi Eze came, I met the dad, and we had a long discussion, and he agreed to play for Nigeria,” Pinnick said.
“His sister was his manager at the time. She came to my flat and we already had all the documentation in place.”
Eze trained with the Super Eagles in London. Photo Credit: NFF/X
The former NFF president explained that Nigeria were asked to pause the process, after which circumstances changed.
“However, they told us to hold on, and that was it,” he added. “Maybe then the elections came and I left the NFF, and that’s probably why he didn’t play.
“Possibly, because Eberechi loved Nigeria. I can tell you that. I went through my messages with him at some point.”
Eze eventually made his senior debut for England in 2023, six years after his involvement with Nigeria. He has since earned 16 caps for the Three Lions, starting four matches.
Eze celebrating his goal for Arsenal. Photo Credit: Imago
During Pinnick’s time in office between 2014 and 2022, Nigeria successfully persuaded several foreign-born players including Alex Iwobi, Ola Aina, Ademola Lookman and Calvin Bassey to switch allegiance.
However, others such as Jamal Musiala, Karim Adeyemi, Tammy Abraham and Eze ultimately chose to represent European nations.
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Pinnick compared Eze’s situation with that of Lookman, whose decision took longer to resolve.
“Lookman was very tough,” he said. “I didn’t even know his father was in Nigeria, but I was referred to him, and we played tennis together at the Ikoyi Club when we were trying to sign the documentation.
“It was tough, but eventually we got him and so many others.”
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Nigeria head coach Gernot Rohr had included Eze in plans for friendly matches against Senegal and Burkina Faso in 2017, but those games were later cancelled for security reasons.
