“Love to play for Nigeria” — Chuba Akpom tells Eric Chelle of his Super Eagles call-up desire

By Monsurah Olatunji

Chuba Akpom has expressed his frustration over not receiving a call-up to the Nigerian senior national team since switching his allegiance from England in 2019.

Born in London to Nigerian parents, Akpom holds dual citizenship and has represented England at youth and under-21 levels. However, after pledging to play for Nigeria in 2019, he has yet to earn a call-up despite his impressive performances at the club level.

The Arsenal academy product has been one of Nigeria’s most consistent forwards in recent seasons, but has been left out of the national team picture. In an interview shared by Oma Sports on Instagram, Akpom spoke candidly about his wait and his ongoing hope for the future, especially with the new Super Eagles management.

“Of course, I am a Nigerian boy and love to play for Nigeria, but I just haven’t had the chance. I’ve been waiting since 2019,” he said. “I switched allegiance a long time ago, but if it happens, it happens; if not, I just keep working hard.”

Akpom continued, “I don’t have a clue why I haven’t been called up. Maybe there are a lot of good strikers. For the nation to progress, selection needs to be on merit—the players that are performing well need to be selected.”

He also reflected on his experience growing up in England, adding, “When you grow up in England and play for the England U16s to U21s, you never have the chance of playing for Nigeria’s youth teams.”