23 August 2007
Lagos — Getafe forward Ike Uche has forced his way into the squad to face Lesotho in next month's African Nations Cup qualifier in Warri after wowing Super Eagles coach Berti Vogts in Wednesday's friendly match against Macedonia.
The Super Eagles played out a 0-0 draw against their hosts, but Vogts told KICK OFF exclusively after the match that he was more than happy with what he had seen of the Getafe man and would be calling him up to be part of the squad for the Lesotho game.
"Uche was very good and he will come to the camp for the match when we start training in September," Vogts stated.
Uche was not the only debutant to impress though, as Vogts also had good words for midfielder Richard Eromoigbe and Nice defender Onyekachi Apam.
"I saw some good new players like Apam and also Richard. The only problem we did not score but we only trained for one hour before the game as a team."
Berti added that he was happy with the way the players are responding to his philosophy.
"It was a very good game for me. It is very important that when we lose the ball, directly we attack the ball and get possession and then the players get into position. We have to be organised inside the field."
Meanwhile, a mix-up had seen the Kano-born midfielder overlooked by Nigeria for five years but the problem has now been resolved, leaving the possibility Etuhu could figure in January's MTN Africa Cup of Nations.
The then-Manchester City player was involved in a get-together before the 2002 tournament but withdrew through injury.
The Super Eagles were then put out when they believed he had later turned out for England Under-21s.
Although this did not preclude him from playing for them, they wanted an apology before considering him for selection again.
The player was oblivious to this until this month, when it was pointed out to the Nigerian FA that it was his brother Kelvin who had represented the Three Lions.
The Nigerians responded by calling Etuhu up for this week's friendly against Macedonia in Skopje, but the fax did not reach the manager's desk until Monday morning - too late for the 25-year-old to play.
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