The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has prioritised pre-camping MRI scans for all players to ensure only those within the right age bracket represent the country at the U17 men’s national team, the Golden Eaglets.
According to the team media officer, Francis Achi, the football body is leaving no margin for errors in order to avoid extensive decimation of the team due to failed MRI tests as in the past.
“NFF is very serious about selecting players within the age bracket, not only to ensure that many of the selected players come true to ranks but also to avoid previous situations whereby teams got severely depleted after players who had passed the screening exercise were dropped after failing the MRI test”, Achi told PUNCH Sports Extra on Sunday.
“To this end, every player scouted is mandated to have an MRI scan at designated hospitals approved by the NFF. After that has been done and the player has passed Grades 1–4, he can be allowed to join up with the rest of the team. Even NFF is not accepting Grade 5 because the player will exceed the required age before the FIFA U17 World Cup”, he added.
Players failing the MRI test has been part of the fabric of the team for several years now, which is why the NFF is assiduously working towards nipping it in the bud this term.
In February 2023, three key players who were in Ghana for the WAFU qualifiers failed the age test despite an initial order for all the players in camp to do their own private MRI tests before an official one conducted later by the NFF.
In 2021, eight key players missed a chance to be part of the team after they failed MRI tests ahead of the U-17 Africa Nations Cup in Morocco.
In 2013, six players—a goalkeeper, three defenders, and two strikers—failed the test conducted by the Nigerian authority to verify the age of the boys ahead of the FIFA U17 Cup in the UAE. This became imperative for the body in order to avoid the embarrassment witnessed before the African Championship when some players were sent home after an MRI scan revealed they were older than 17.
Meanwhile, the Golden Eaglets, under the tutelage of Manu Garba, are training daily at the FIFA Goal Project pitch at Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja, preparatory to their WAFU Zone B title defence in Ghana from 15–29 May 2024.
The record five-time world champions have been drawn in Group B alongside Burkina Faso, Niger, and Togo following the draw conducted on Friday, which also pitches host Ghana against Benin Republic and Cote d’Ivoire in Group A.
The Golden Eaglets showed promises in their first test game on Saturday by thrashing Ramsaky Football Club 4-2 at the FIFA Goal Project, where a string of test games are lined up to put them in proper shape for the sub-regional tournament.
