The goalkepper trainer of the senior national team of Nigeria Ike Shorunmu has praised Akwa United shot stopper Adewale Adeyinka over his performance while with the team.
Former Nigeria U17 goalkeeper Adeyinka trained with the senior national team of Nigeria in the last four games namely the friendly games against Mexico and Ecuador respectively and the first two AFCON 2023 qualifiers against Sierra Leone and Sao Paulo and Principe.
He appears to have made an impression on Shorunmu as he specifically mentioned him while speaking on the competition for the number one spot of the team which he said is presently the sole reserve of Francis Uzoho. Although he said the spot is still open for all.
“The last two games we played, He was the number one but the spot is still open”, he said in an interview on Fresh FM.
” I saw a lot of positive things in the goalkeepers. That’s why we retained Adeyinka Adewale and it’s a process . You can’t just come in and say you want to be number one. People understand how I started in the national team.
” I had a lot of experienced goalkeepers ahead of me and I learnt a lot from Peter Rufai, the late Wilfred Agbonibare and Alloy Agu. So for sure they are our Nigerian goalkeeper and they have a lot of qualities in them but it’s a process thing”, he concluded.
On the issue of new Watford goalkeeper Maduka Okoye, Shorunmu said he asked to be left alone to focus on his new club when he was called up for the last round of games of the team.
“Well first he is still part of the team but then we called him during the end of the season , last season before we traveled to America. That is for the two friendlies that we played in America. The secretary of the team told me they tried to reach him but they couldn’t get him”, he explained in an interview on Fresh FM.
” I collected the number from him. I called too, I couldn’t reach him but about three days after, the secretary of the team told me he had got him through a friend on message. He said to me that the guy now asked for him to be out of the team for now because he has made a move to a new club and wants to concentrate on his new club. I said okay no problem”, he concluded.