Nigeria stars will be barred from securing a work permit to play in England should the Super Eagles now slip outside the top 70 teams in the FIFA Rankings.
The latest FIFA ratings have the Eagles at 70th in the world and according to experts, Nigeria players will be hardest hit should the team fall outside this ranking as one of the rules states work permit will only be considered for non-European players whose countries are within the top 70 in the world.
“If they (Nigeria) slip one more place, its players can’t play in England,” said African football expert Tunde Adelakun.
“Work permit laws for non-European players say the player’s country has to be in top 70 in the world.”
An immediate casualty of this could be Nigeria U20 skipper Kelechi Nwakali, who is set to soon sign a professional contract with Arsenal.
Nigeria international Umar Aminu of Turkish club Osmanlispor has also been linked with Premier League side Hull City, while Belgium-based Wilfred Ndidi has been mentioned to join Watford.
Nigeria stars in England include Odion Ighalo, Isaac Success (Watford), Ahmed Musa (Leicester City), Kelechi Iheanacho (Manchester City) and Mikel Obi, Victor Moses (Chelsea).
