There is the possibility of an international friendly match between the Three Lions of England and the Super Eagles of Nigeria.
Feelers from the visit of the President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick, to the chairman of the English Football Association (FA), Greg Dyke, last Tuesday at the offices of the FA at Wembley Stadium, London, revealed that the match might come up in October.
Pinnick rounded off his visit by bringing to the notice of his English counterpart that the last time England played Nigeria in a friendly was more than 20 years ago.
He said: “We believe it is time we had an England/Nigeria match at Wembley, and we have done our homework and found out that you have nothing on in the FIFA window in October.”
Dyke immediately instructed his aides to take it up with the department managing the England national team, and promised to speak to the manager, Roy Hodgson, about it. It was agreed that should the October date becomes unrealistic, the friendly will be fixed at the next available opportunity.
Pinnick extolled the virtues of the English FA, and his admiration for the English football culture, and restated his desire to build a sustainable football culture in Nigeria.
He explained the rationale behind the NFF collaboration with the English FA.
“We have every reason to want to work with you. Apart from the fact that England colonised our country, and that London remains a first stop for many of our country’s people looking to sojourn abroad, we also see you as ideal and perfect role models on which we would want to build our game,” said the Delta-born administrator.
“We admire the culture of football you have here. While you do not have the best results at international level, the football culture here is second to none, and we want to learn from you.”
Pinnick spoke of areas where he wanted collaboration with the FA, vis-a-vis working on technical support and development of Nigerian football, providing support and advice on all areas of administration and leadership.
Responding, Dyke pledged to do everything possible to promote the collaboration with the NFF.
Speaking of his interest in Africa, Dyke stated that his wife, having spent many years in Uganda in the past, had influenced him to becoming a fan of the continent.
His words: “Anytime I go to Africa and I am leaving, I look back and tell myself: ‘I can live here’.”
Dyke, who promised to honour an invitation to visit Nigeria soon, expressed his interest in establishing strong relations internationally.
“After we lost our 2018 bid (to host the FIFA World Cup), it became apparent that we needed to build our international ties, and we need true friends, so I am very keen on this.”
