Newcastle United forward William Osula has emerged as a new target for the Nigeria Football Federation after missed opportunities to secure the services of Patrick Dorgu, Philip Billing and Isabella Obaze. The trio are no longer eligible to represent Nigeria, having played in senior competitive matches for Denmark. According to Danish magazine Tipsbladet, the NFF has reached out to Osula through his agent in an attempt to secure his international future. Although Osula appeared for Denmark's U21 side in a European Championship qualifier against Lithuania in June 2023, he remains available for senior international duty as he has not played in a cap-tying senior match. He was named on the bench for Denmark during 2026 World Cup qualifying games against Scotland, Greece, North Macedonia and the Czech Republic but did not come off. The 22-year-old has scored eight goals in 15 appearances for Denmark's U21 team. At club level, Osula has found form recently, scoring three goals in his last four Premier League outings, including the decisive goal in Newcastle's 2-1 victory over Manchester United. Born in Denmark to Nigerian parents, Osula qualifies for both nations but has yet to commit to either at senior level.
Nigeria's pursuit of William Osula gains urgency only after he scores against Manchester United, not when he was developing at Sheffield United. His non-selection in Denmark's recent senior matches, despite prior U21 involvement, leaves a narrow window for Nigeria to act. Osula's eight goals for Denmark U21s show he is no unknown, yet Denmark's reluctance to field him speaks volumes. If Nigeria secures him, it will be less about winning a battle and more about capitalising on being the only bidder.
💡 NaijaBuzz is an AI-assisted news aggregator. This content is curated from third-party sources — NaijaBuzz is not the original publisher and is not responsible for the accuracy of source reporting. The NaijaBuzz Take is AI-assisted editorial opinion only, not established fact. All persons mentioned are presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction. NaijaBuzz does not endorse the views expressed in source articles.
