January 08, (THEWILL) – Mipo Odubeko, a promising West Ham United striker, is believed to have sworn his international allegiance to his birth country of Ireland over Nigeria, where his parents are from.
The English Football Association was looking into Odubeko’s eligibility when he moved to Manchester with his parents in August 2015 on Manchester City’s invitation.
After recent meetings with U21 boss Jim Crawford, Odubeko has decided to represent the Republic of Ireland at international level, according to the Irish Examiner.
He was previously hesitant to commit his international career to Ireland after being left out of their team for the 2019 European U17 Championship and withdrawing from a U21 squad in March, claiming he had recently returned from injury and had a hectic schedule.
Odubeko’s family wanted him to play for the Nigerian national team eight months ago, and the excellent centre striker was willing to choose the Super Eagles over the Three Lions and The Boys in Green, but the Football Association of Ireland looks to have swayed him.
After struggling for game time at Huddersfield Town, where he made six appearances off the bench in the first half of the season, the 19-year-old has returned to his parent club West Ham.
If Odubeko makes his senior team debut in the future, he will follow in the footsteps of Adam Idah and Andrew Omobamidele (both Norwich City), Chiedozie Ogbene (Rotherham United), and Gavin Bazunu (Manchester City), who were all eligible for Nigeria before making their senior team debuts for Ireland.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
