Nigeria: Super Eagles Begin Training in London Ahead of Serbia Friendly
The Super Eagles have begun preparations in earnest for Tuesday's international friendly with the Serbia National Team.
The Super Eagles
contingent flew into chilly London on Saturday from Poland and trained
at The Hive (home ground of Barnet FC and London Bees) on Sunday.
The same venue will host Tuesday's friendly.
Tuesday will be
four days on a year that the Eagles battled to a 1-1 draw with Senegal's
Teranga Lions at the same venue, in a friendly in which the Nigerians
matched the taller and stronger Senegalese in all departments, with
Kelechi Iheanacho equalizing from the penalty spot minutes to the end.
Both the Eagles and the Lions are going to the World Cup in Russia as two of Africa's five flagbearers.
Just like Friday's
opposition in Wroclaw, the three -time African champions will be up
against another Russia 2018 World Cup -bound squad, but this time, with
more playing personnel.
Junior Ajayi, Gabriel Okechukwu, and midfielder Mikel Agu have all arrived in London after failing to make it to Wroclaw.
Agu was called up owing to the inability of captain Mikel John Obi to travel from China.
Midfield workhorse Oghenekaro Etebo, nursing an injury, watched from the sidelines.
The squad of 26 players and technical and backroom staff are staying at the Hotel Crowne Plaza Ealing.
Following Sunday's
morning training session, Nigeria will hold a pre-match press conference
at The Amber Suite of The Hive at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 26.
At the World Cup
finals in Russia, Serbia will play five-time champions Brazil,
Switzerland and Costa Rica in Group E, while the Eagles battle Croatia,
Iceland and Argentina.
Serbia are ranked
34 in the world by FIFA (18 places above Nigeria), but the Eagles have
become accustomed to tearing apart paper ratings and bookmakers' odds,
as they did in dismantling Cameroon, Algeria, and Zambia in the African
qualifying series.
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