Peseiro to drop 16 players as Eagles convene in Abu Dhabi

‘Fans should brace up for ECOWAS border extortions’

Super Eagles Coach, Jose Peseiro, will trim his 41-man provisional squad to a manageable 25 players for the African Cup of Nations, a source close to the coach has said.

Nigeria, like all the qualified teams, are expected to submit its final squad list for the championship and the players’ jersey numbers to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) before January 2, 2024.

The championship will hold from January 13 to February 11, 2024, in six Ivoirian cities. According to the source, who pleaded anonymity, teams are allowed to register up to 27 players for the championship, but Peseiro has decided on a ‘manageable 25’ to ensure he has enough room to implement his tactics for Super Eagles’ campaign, which begins on January 13, 2024.

He said: “Everything is set for the team’s departure for Abu Dhabi, where we will play tune up matches against Burkina Faso and DR Congo in a three-nation pre-games competition.

“Burkina Faso are already in Abu Dhabi and the Eagles will arrive on January 2, stay for seven days before leaving for Cote d’Ivoire.

“As we speak, the chosen players’ clubs have been notified and have agreed to their departure for Abu Dhabi starting from this weekend. A Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) team will be in the Middle East country to receive the team on arrival.” He said the Super Eagles will train in UAE from January 2 to 9 before moving to Cote d’Ivoire.

Meanwhile, Nigerians hoping to be in Cote d’Ivoire for the African Cup of Nations have been warned to brace up for the extortion by Customs and Immigration officers at the borders of ECOWAS countries.

As West Africans, Nigerians are supposed to have a hitch-free movement to the host country as