Liverpool midfielder Ovie Ejaria committed his international allegiance to Nigeria switching from England.
Ejaria, who is currently on loan at English Championship side Reading, was born in London, England, to Nigerian parents.
Nigerian Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick confirmed to ESPN that Ejaria had agreed to play for Nigeria.
“His documents have been sent to FIFA since,” Pinnick said.
According to an anonymous source who spoke to ESPN, Ejaria’s documentation had been delayed due to the COVID-19 lockdown and will likely need to be filed again.
“We might need to resubmit because by the time coronavirus lockdown is over; the initial application might be dated. Plus he needs to do a fresh Nigerian passport, which he hasn’t been able to do as yet,” the source said.
Ejaria, 22, previously trained with the Nigeria Under-17 team in 2013. He subsequently represented England at Under-20 level winning the 2017 FIFA World Cup in South Korea.
According to Liverpool, whom he joined in 2014, Ejaria’s loan switch has an agreement for the move to become permanent this summer. He has scored three goals and made four assists in 32 games for Reading this season.
