Former Manchester City and QPR defender Nedum Onuoha says Crystal Palace new signing Ebere Eze will be better off in terms of his international career if he picks Nigeria ahead of England.
Eze trained with the Nigerian team in London but few months later after an explosive start to the season at English Championship side QPR he accepted to play for the U21 of England.
He was approached by Nigeria again to be a part of the senior national team but he turned it down insisting on concentrating with playing for the U21s of England.
Onuoha who now plays in the MLS for Real Salt Lake said at a point he was hoping to be in such position but it never came something which he said he would have loved to happen because he would have played for Nigeria at senior level.
Despite progressing through the youth ranks of the various levels of the English team, Onuoha never got the chance to play for England at senior level.
The 33 year old rounded up by telling Eze that he will love to see the 22 year old in the Nigerian colours but will still wish him well if in the future he decide to honor an invitation to play for England.
“ I hope your career will be better than mine and I hope you get to the position which I was hoping to be at one day where the full national team for Nigeria or the full national team of England would have called and then I would have had to make a proper decision. That was what I was hoping for .
“For me I don’t think it’s not really going to to be a tough one just because if everything was stable in terms of my club career and all that stuff.
“My mum is Nigerian, my Dad is Nigerian, my family is Nigerian and I was born in Nigeria. I’m lucky to have been born in Nigeria and I have that England heritage because I was raised here .
“For me it’s just something a little bit extra but it didn’t work out for me for several reason some where strictly political which I disagreed with but people criticize me till this day saying I was begging to play for England when I have not begged for anything in my life.
“ That’s one thing when if I eventually retired I would have missed. I would have had the feeling of maybe playing for Nigeria at a good point in my career but the good thing for you is that the time will come when you will have to make a decision of picking between two great nations.
“And there’s no wrong decision if you pick any but I would have love to see you in the green white green but if you are going to play for England if they do select you somewhere along the way in the future. I will wear your shirt I have no problem with that”.
Michael James
