Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle has two fresh attacking options on his radar ahead of the May Unity Cup, with former Porto forward Abraham Marcus and Plymouth Argyle’s Owen Oseni both under consideration for the squad.
Eric Chelle is preparing to use the Unity Cup as a window to introduce new blood into the Super Eagles setup, and two forwards have emerged as the men he is watching most closely. Abraham Marcus, a former Porto academy product now operating in Portugal’s top flight with Estrela da Amadora, and Owen Oseni, who has been turning heads at Plymouth Argyle in the English Championship, are both on the coach’s radar heading into May’s tournament in London.
According to FootballInNigeria.com.ng, Chelle has indicated his intention to give opportunities to players of Nigerian descent who have not yet featured at senior level, as well as previously invited players who received limited game time. Both Marcus and Oseni fit that profile.
Abraham Marcus: From Remo Stars to Portugal
Abraham Marcus made his way into Porto’s system after a spell at Nigerian club Remo Stars, one of the more established academies in the country. However, his senior breakthrough at Porto never came, and he departed the club last summer having made just a single first-team appearance. Rather than drift away from competitive football, Marcus secured a move to Estrela da Amadora in the Primeira Liga, and the results have been striking.
In 26 league appearances for Estrela, Marcus has recorded ten goal involvements, with a standout performance against Casa Pia where he scored once and provided two assists in a single match. That kind of output in a competitive top-flight environment is exactly the form that gets coaches paying attention. For Super Eagles fans who want to follow Marcus and the Unity Cup buildup, the Bet9ja welcome bonus page has the latest offers ahead of the tournament.
His international absence stretches back to June 2021, when he last appeared in two friendlies against Cameroon. That five-year gap between caps makes him, in practical terms, a fresh face for the current squad, and Chelle appears to see value in bringing such players in for a tournament where the pressure is lower than a qualifying campaign.
Owen Oseni: Championship Goals and Multiple Passports
Owen Oseni presents a more complex picture. The Plymouth Argyle forward has had a productive Championship season, contributing ten goals and five assists across the campaign. That kind of combined output in England’s second tier carries genuine weight, and Chelle’s interest is understandable. The complication is that Oseni holds a Nigerian passport but is also eligible to represent both Ivory Coast and the Republic of Ireland, meaning the NFF faces a genuine international competition for his commitment.
Nigeria’s ability to secure Oseni’s pledge before another federation moves will depend on how quickly they can make him feel genuinely wanted rather than simply considered. The Unity Cup provides an ideal platform to do exactly that by giving him minutes on the pitch, a squad environment, and a sense of what representing the Super Eagles means in practice. Fans interested in following Nigerian players across Europe can also use the Bet9ja’s YOHAIG welcome bonus to get started on Bet9ja ahead of the tournament.
Chelle’s Broader Unity Cup Thinking
The Unity Cup, held at The Valley in London, gives Nigeria a chance to defend their title against Zimbabwe, Jamaica, and India. While the competition is not at the highest level, it serves a genuine purpose for Chelle: assessing fringe players, integrating new faces, and keeping squad momentum alive between major competitions. With the Super Eagles’ next AFCON not until 2028 following CAF’s decision to move to a four-year cycle, the fixtures between now and then carry extra weight as benchmarks for squad development. Bettors tracking the Super Eagles at the Unity Cup can check out Bet9ja booking code options ahead of Nigeria’s semi-final against Zimbabwe on May 26.
📌 Did You Know?
- Abraham Marcus originally came through the ranks at Remo Stars before making the move to Europe, part of a growing pipeline of NPFL-developed talent finding pathways into top-flight European football.
- Porto’s youth academy is widely regarded as one of the best in European football, having produced players like Ruben Neves, Joao Felix, and numerous senior Portugal internationals over the past two decades.
- Owen Oseni’s eligibility for Nigeria, Ivory Coast, and the Republic of Ireland gives him three strong international options, placing the NFF in competition with two well-resourced federations for his long-term commitment.
- The Unity Cup is held in London, which hosts a large Nigerian diaspora community, meaning the Super Eagles typically enjoy significant support from the terraces at these matches regardless of their opponent.
- CAF’s decision to move the Africa Cup of Nations to a four-year cycle means Nigeria’s next AFCON defence will come in 2028, making the years between major tournaments critical for squad evolution and transition.
- Estrela da Amadora returned to the Portuguese top flight in 2023 after a lengthy absence, and their ability to attract and develop players of Marcus’s calibre reflects their growing ambition as a club.
- The Super Eagles won the 2025 Unity Cup in Brentford, with the tournament serving as a useful preseason platform before the Africa Cup of Nations campaign in Morocco that followed later in the year.
