The Premier League has had a long history of featuring prominent Nigerian football players and the trend looks as though it is continuing, with prominent players from Nigeria currently in the league. Many of these will be heading to the African Cup of Nations in 2022, with the hope of taking the title and the trophy back home to Nigeria.
It seems that belief in the national side is strong as Nigeria will be amongst the fancied teams with the bookmakers. A glance at any of the best sports betting sites in South Africa will demonstrate that. The belief of the fans in their team is also reflected in the fact that there are odds in advance on markets such as who will win the tournament, who will win each group, and who will be the top scorer. It shows that there are fans eager to engage with the tournament before it even starts.
Key players will more than likely determine whether Nigeria can be the ones to lift the trophy, so here are three Premier League players who can help the team succeed at the 2022 African Cup of Nations.
Wilfred Ndidi – Leicester City
Playing as a defensive midfielder is not the easiest position when you want to stand out, and the fact that Ndidi does this so easily shows just how good he is. He is a player who has been talked about in the past as making a big-money move to a top team and would certainly deserve that.
He’s tasted success recently too, with Leicester winning the FA Cup last season and that combined with him playing in the Europa League this season will certainly be a positive for his international play. Although Ndidi may not grab the headlines for goal scoring, he is a very strong player in the Premier League, and when he plays for Nigeria, he will be a big reason for any success they have.
Kelechi Iheanacho – Leicester City
Another player from Leicester, this time it is center forward Kelechi Iheanacho. He doesn’t get the same kind of playing time at Leicester as Ndidi, but when he does, the forward has a good record, and we have seen that come to the fore when he has represented Nigeria.
Recently, Iheanacho scored the winner in the Community Shield as Leicester took home the first trophy of the new Premier League season. Nigeria will be hoping that he can get himself on the scoresheet more as the African Nations approaches in 2022 so that he arrives at the tournament full of confidence.
Alex Iwobi – Everton
It feels like Alex Iwobi has been around for many years, but he is only 25 years old and has plenty left to offer. A move to Everton has helped him in the Premier League, and he is a key part of the national team, with 50 caps already under his belt, and it would be no surprise to see him get to 100.
Iwobi has the ability to score and create, something that has helped him carve out a very good Premier League career so far.
