35 Home Based Players Selected By Coach Samson Siasia With Four Others

Coach Samson Siasia has selected 35 home-based and four foreign-based players for a final phase of preparations for an All Africa Games qualifier against Gabon.

The selected players are expected to arrive the Serob Hotel camp in Abuja on January 4.

He disclosed that the team’s training will now move into the more serious phase as his technical team have been able to select the boys from the men, and that this is time to go into tactical.

“I must commend all those who came for the exercise, that we did not select you does not mean you are not good enough, but the reality is that only 35 players must be selected, and that was the job we did,” he said.


“We have dropped you now, for you to go back to your clubs and work extra hard to make this team in the future, the doors of this team are not shut to you, if you improve and we see you playing for your clubs we will invite you to come and fight for a shirt, so don’t be discouraged at not being selected.

“For those of you selected, you are just lucky, but to keep your place in this team you must go back home and continue training so as not to fall by the way side when we begin the next phase of camping, I have been impressed with what you guys have shown me and I can safely say we have a future.”

The U23 team coach then added that he had to select only 4 foreign pros, so as not to build of team of foreign players, and that as the team progresses more of such players will be invited to camp to also be part of the team.