Ikorodu City’s attacking midfielder , Shola Adelani, has earned a well-deserved call-up to Nigeria’s U-20 men’s national team as the Flying Eagles reconvene for a training tour in Egypt later this month ahead of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). PUNCH Sports Extra has confirmed the development.
Adelani has been in outstanding form in the Nigeria Premier Football League this season, netting seven goals so far—five of which have come in his last five appearances.
Head coach Aliyu Zubairu has summoned a squad of 30 players to camp as they gear up for two friendly matches scheduled for February 25 and 27 in Cairo. The squad comprises three goalkeepers, nine defenders, seven midfielders, and 11 forwards.
Among the goalkeepers called up for the tour are Ifeanyi Harcourt of Sporting Lagos, Light Emerenonye from Diamond Academy, and Mavlon FC’s Abubakar Rufai.
Other notable invitees include Bayelsa United’s defender Daniel Bameyi, Kenneth Igboke from Rangers International, and El-Kanemi Warriors trio Adamu Maigari, Nasiru Salihu, and Sulaimon Alabi. Enyimba forward Clinton Jephta also made the squad.
The 2025 U-20 AFCON will take place in Ivory Coast from April 26 to May 15, serving as a qualifying event for the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which is set to be held in Chile from September 27 to October 19, 2025.
The Flying Eagles, winners of the U-20 AFCON in 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2005, 2011, and 2015, secured their ticket to this year’s tournament by clinching the WAFU-B U-20 Championship in Lome, Togo, last October, defeating Ghana’s Black Satellites 3-1 in the final.
Nigeria, who finished as FIFA U-20 World Cup runners-up in 1989 and 2005, narrowly missed out on a semi-final berth in last year’s edition in Argentina, bowing out to Korea Republic after extra time.
