My family eager to see me play for Nigeria – Bayer Leverkusen’s Tella

Bayer Leverkusen winger, Nathan Tella has revealed that his family is excited and eager to see him play for the Super Eagles.

The 24-year-old was born in England to Nigerian parents and despite being eligible to play for the Three Lions, he opted to represent Nigeria at world tournaments.

Super Eagles coach, Jose Peseiro handed Tella his maiden invitation for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

In a chat with BBC Sport Africa, the graduate of Arsenal Academy revealed that his family can’t wait to watch him on the field when he eventually makes his debut for Nigeria.

Tella said; “It’s always been about representing Nigeria. My family will be over the moon to watch me fulfil that dream.

“I am proud of my British and Nigerian sides and lucky to have both backgrounds. Of course, we have both worlds, but ours is a proper Nigerian home [with] culture, food and tradition.”

In another news…

Former Manchester City forward, Sergio Aguero has claimed that Lionel Messi chose to join Inter Miami over moving to Saudi Arabia because of his family’s convenience.

He said; “I think that at the end of this stage, with the age that Leo [Lionel Messi] and Cristiano are, and many players aged 32 and 33, maybe they are tired of so much demand to be at a high level.

“I think that Leo opted for him and his family to be well and to be able to play as relaxed as possible; and in the other case if he had been playing in Europe, obviously that the requirement is different and so he can’t play his last years the way he wanted, which is to enjoy, right?

“And obviously, I think that between Miami and Arabia, I think he chose Miami for convenience. Miami is a nice place, there are lots of Latinos, and I think he also saw it from the family side, which I think they can fit quite well in Miami, and in Arabia it can be more complicated, right? I think he saw nothing more than that”.

Messi moved to Inter Miami in July 2023 after rejecting a world-record contract from Saudi Arabian club, Al Hilal.

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