Head coach of the senior national team of Nigeria Eric Chelle says young Brentford defender Benjamin Fredrick has almost everything needed by a top footballer after his fantastic senior international debut yesterday, OwnGoalNigeria.com reports.
Fredrick was called up as an emergency cover for Nigeria at the Unity Cup ahead of their final game against Jamaica, with captain Ahmed Musa departing shortly after the 2-1 win over Ghana in the opening game of the tournament.
He trained for just two days and Chelle handed him a start which he took with both hands much to the delight of everyone who watched the Super Eagles win 5-4 on penalties, after a 2-2 draw in regulation time.
Chelle who took the bold decision to include the 20 year old largely due to the fact that the tournament was taking place in the home ground of his team has nothing but praises for the Simoiben Academy graduate.
” Benjamin Frederick was good. He was very calm and composed. Technically, he’s close to perfect — especially when it comes to touching the ball and making strong passes,” Chelle said at the post match conference.
“He reads the game well, but of course, there’s room for improvement. We conceded a goal, and maybe he could have done something differently in that situation. Like I always say about our players — even when they play well — we still need to improve every day.
My assistant even joked that I should take credit for his performance because I selected him. But really, it’s just one game — a big one — and he needs to keep working hard and improving”, he concluded.
Mohammed Mowiz Suleiman
