EPL: Fulham star invites former Super Eagles man Austin Eguavoen to watch Crystal Palace clash

The retired Nigerian defender is the head of the technical department of the Nigeria Football Federation

Former Super Eagles captain Austin Eguavoen was in England on Boxing Day to watch Crystal Palace suffer a 3-0 defeat to Fulham.

Fulham defender, Tosin Adarabioyo, who is of Nigerian descent, invited Austin Eguavoen to come to see the game live at Selhurst Park.

Interestingly, Fulham manager Marco Silva kept Adarabioyo on the bench for the entire duration of the encounter. The former Everton boss preferred the centre-back pairing of Tim Ream and Issa Diop against Palace.

Eguavoen, however, saw two other players of Nigerian descent Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze make the starting lineup for the Eagles.

But red cards to Tyrick Mitchell and James Tomkins hampered Crystal Palace’s game plan as goals from Bobby Reid, Tim Ream, and Aleksandar Mitrovic gave Fulham the maximum points.

It is not known, however, if Eguavoen’s trip to meet Adarabioyo has anything to do with the centre-back’s decision not to play for the Super Eagles.

Born in Manchester to parents of Nigerian roots, Adarabioyo is a former England youth international and represented his country of birth on 14 occasions across the various age-group levels.

Adarabioyo remains eligible to represent Nigeria as he is yet to make his senior debut for England.

The 25-year-old defender reportedly turned down an approach by the Nigeria Football Federation to represent the Super Eagles in 2018.

The former West Bromwich Albion ace, however, opened the door to a potential call-up in 2020 when he expressed his desire of playing at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar with either England or Nigeria.

Nigeria did not qualify for the World Cup, though, while England snubbed Adarabioyo in their squad for the tournament.

Reaching out to Eguavoen may be Adarabioyo’s first step towards retracing his steps towards the Super Eagles.