Nigeria hope remains for Crystal Palace defender Honest Ahanor after Italy omission

Crystal Palace defender Honest Ahanor will not be involved when Italy face France in the upcoming UEFA Nations League match, keeping open the possibility of the 19-year-old choosing Nigeria.

Italy’s decision not to include Ahanor in their travelling squad for the game in Saint-Denis means he will not become tied to the Azzurri during the October 2026 international window, allnigeriasoccer.com reports.

Ahanor was born in Aversa, Italy, but qualifies to play for Nigeria through his Nigerian parents. The defender is currently on loan at Crystal Palace from Atalanta and remains eligible to represent the Super Eagles at senior level.

He is one of nine players left out of Italy’s squad for the trip to France. Nicolo Cambiaghi, Diego Coppola, Daniele Ghilardi, Samuele Inacio, Eddy Kouadio, Rolando Mandragora, Massimo Pessina and Alessandro Romano are the other omissions.

Ahanor has so far made two senior appearances for Italy, both in summer friendly matches against Luxembourg and Greece. Under Fifa’s eligibility regulations, he would have needed to play in two further matches this month to reach the limit for players seeking to change their international allegiance.

Fifa rules allow a player to switch national teams if they have made no more than three senior appearances for their original country before turning 21. Ahanor would therefore become cap-tied to Italy only after making a fourth senior appearance for the Azzurri.

His exclusion from the squad means Nigeria’s possibility of securing his international future remains open, although Ahanor has already represented Italy twice at senior level.

The situation differs from that of another Italy-born defender of Nigerian descent, Brentford’s Michael Kayode. He is no longer eligible to play for the Super Eagles after making his competitive debut for Italy in their 4-1 victory over Turkey on September 28.