Eric Chelle Eyes More Players Like Benjamin Fredricks as 4 New Stars Set To Join Super Eagles
- Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has revealed plans to introduce four new players into the national team squad
- The former Mali coach handed Benjamin Fredrick his breakthrough opportunity during the 2025 Unity Cup in London last May
- The 48-year-old also gave seven young players their senior debuts at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco
Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has begun plans to overhaul the squad by gradually replacing aging players following the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco.
Chelle toured match centres across the Nigeria Premier Football League as well as European fixtures in search of players capable of strengthening the national team.
The Franco-Malian attempted to convince Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri and Newcastle United’s Jacob Murphy to commit their international futures to Nigeria ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, but the moves failed to materialise.
Source: Getty Images
However, Werder Bremen defender Felix Agu successfully switched his international allegiance from Germany to Nigeria under Chelle after years of indecision.
One of the biggest discoveries for Nigeria was the emergence of Benjamin Fredrick during the 2025 Unity Cup in London, where he was drafted into the squad as a replacement for Christantus Uche, who failed to join the team.
Fredrick went on to cement his place in the national setup, featuring in the remaining 2026 World Cup qualifiers, but missed the 2025 AFCON due to injury, per ESPN.
Eric Chelle went ahead to hand AFCON debuts to six young players, including Muhammad Usman, Ryan Alebiosu, Igoh Ogbu, Ebenezer Akinsamiro, Tochukwu Nnadi, and Salim Fago.
Nigeria settled for a bronze medal at the 2025 AFCON, following their win over the Pharaohs of Egypt in the third-place match at Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca on January 17, per Al Jazeera.
Chelle lists plans as Nigeria's coach
Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has revealed plans to integrate four young players into the current squad ahead of future international engagements.
Source: Getty Images
According to OwnGoal, the 48-year-old noted that several talented young players in Europe can understudy the more experienced members of the team.
The former Mali coach explained that the strategy is to gradually introduce the youngsters early and ensure a smooth transition before senior players suffer injuries or retire. He said:
"You can see Nigerian players scattered everywhere in the world. The technical crew selected young players from Belgium, Italy and England last year into the team and you can see that they are good.
"We have a lot of players, four of them from not too popular leagues will be with us."
Chelle failed to mention the names of the players selected from leagues like Belgium, Norway, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Scotland and the Netherlands.
Gusau speaks about Chelle’s future
Legit.ng earlier reported that the Nigeria Football Federation president Ibrahim Gusau has spoken about the discussions around Chelle’s contract extension after winning the AFCON 2025 bronze medal.
Gusau claimed that the NFF is willing to be patient for Chelle to fulfil his remaining 12 months before making a decision on whether he continues or leaves.
Source: Legit.ng
