Nigeria’s Future Eagles arrive in Baku for inaugural FIFA U15 World Cup

Nigeria’s U15 side, the Future Eagles, have arrived in Baku ahead of the inaugural FIFA U15 World Cup and Festival, which will be held in the Azerbaijan capital from 22nd–31st October.

The 14 players and six officials travelled from Abuja on Wednesday night, flying to Istanbul with Turkish Airline before taking a connecting flight to Baku on Thursday afternoon.

Head coach Patrick Bassey and team administrator Nasiru Jibril are among the officials accompanying the squad.

Nigeria have been drawn in Group AD alongside South Sudan, Jordan, The Gambia, Cyprus and Pakistan. Their opening match is against South Sudan on Saturday, followed by fixtures against Jordan and The Gambia on Sunday.

The Future Eagles will complete their group-stage schedule against Cyprus and Pakistan on Monday.

The tournament is being played in an eight-a-side format, with each match consisting of two 20-minute halves.

Results and performances in the group stage will determine the tier in which each team competes during the second phase. Those matches are scheduled for 28th and 29th October, with the tier finals taking place on Friday, 30th October.

Nigeria squad

Goalkeepers:
Victor Wisdom (Eagles Wings Academy, Abuja), Peter Linus (HB Academy, Abuja)

Defenders:
Daniel Olaomi (Eagles Wings Academy), Prosperity Anionovo (Buruj Football Academy, Lagos), Timothy Ijachi (Mavlon FC, Lagos), David Okwusogu (NFF TDS), Michael Ibironke (NFF TDS)

Midfielders:
Abdulsalam Muhammad (Simonben Academy, Kaduna), Martin Chukwu (AS Roma Academy, Abuja), Ayomide Jekami (NFF TDS), Mayowa Salu (NFF TDS)

Forwards:
Abdulrazak Mufutau (12Alive FC, Ibadan), Wisdom Oche (Shakhandam Academy, Abuja), Wisdom Boniface (Adoration Academy, Enugu)