The Golden Eaglets have been assured of massive Nigerian presence at their matches as soon as the 2013 FIFA under-17 World Cup gets underway in the UAE.
This much was said by Mr. Paul Onwuemene,the protocol officer at the Nigeria Embassy in Abu Dhabi even as he disclosed the arrangements being made by the Nigeria’s Ambassador to the UAE, His Excellency, Ibrahim Auwualu at mobilizing Nigerians to support the team’s quest to wrest the FIFA Under-17 trophy for a record fourth time.
“Nigeria is a leader at this level and we are going to do everything humanly possible to support you on and off the pitch,” the Ambassador assured the Golden Eaglets on arrival at the Dubai International Airport last week.
To this end, it was learnt that the Embassy has acquired both the green and white national team jerseys for Nigerians living in the UAE in order to complement the expected travelling party of the Nigeria Football Supporters Club to the World Cup.
“We are going to provide a carnival atmosphere at the stadium for the Golden Eaglets throughout their stay in the UAE because we are mobilizing Nigerians to be at the stadium,” explained Onwuemene. “As I’m speaking with you, we have made arrangement for jerseys in both the green and white colours for the country for the supporters.”
Indeed, the Golden Eaglets would not be lacking support at this World Cup following revelations that the chairman of Nigeria Academicals Sports Committee (NASCOM) and influential owner of Nathaniel Boys FC of Lagos, Mr. Yemi Idowu, would be sponsoring some players who passed through the Golden Eaglets at one stage or the other but were unable to make the squad.
“Our chairman has concluded arrangements for some former Golden Eaglets because he believes they are still part and parcel of the team,” said an aide to the NASCOM boss.
It would be recalled that Mr. Idowu was at the CAN Championship in Morocco last April to lend his support to the National Under-17 team and he is regarded as one of the unseen hands behind the success of the team.
