England manager Roy Hodgson has made it clear that he won’t pick Liverpool star Jordon Ibe just to stop him from choosing to represent Nigeria, reports the Daily Mail.
The 19-year-old has played in various age groups for the Three Lions, including the Under 21s, but is still eligible for the Super Eagles through his father. Whoever the forward plays his first senior international for will be the team he has to stick to.
Nigeria coach Sunday Oliseh has made a personal plea to the teenager to choose Nigeria, but this won’t rush Hodgson in to playing the youngster. The former Anfield boss is adamant that the Reds star will have to earn his place.
“My attitude for this is quite clear,” said the 68-year-old, “I want players who want to play for England. I am not going to start making players English by giving them a few minutes in games. I want Jordon to fight for his place in the team like everybody else. He is certainly a player we like very much and certainly a player we have eyes on.
“It’s far from impossible that he gets called up in one of the next games. But if we do call him up it won’t be because we are worried about other nations.We’re England. And when it gets so bad that we can’t get enough players who want to play for England, who want to put the England shirt on, then we are in a difficult period.”
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Ibe isn’t the only player who the ex-Fulham chief may pick for the next few games to avoid losing him to a different country. Aston Villa ace Jack Grealish can represent either Ireland or England, and is yet to decide which he wants to play for.
As England have already qualified for Euro 2016, their next two games against Estonia and Lithuania could be perfect for trying out new personnel and tactics ahead of the tournament next summer.