The head coach of the senior national team of Nigeria, Jose Peseiro, has explained his decision to invite the U20 captain, Bameyi, to the senior national team for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers games against Guinea Bissau.

Despite playing for a non-league side, Bameyi made the 23-man list and has been training with the team ahead of the games.

Peseiro admitted that he only watched a few league games in Nigeria and, therefore, relied on Bameyi’s performance at the U20 training and friendly matches.

“I keep more time with the U20. I watched the training, I watched the friendly match. I watched three match, it’s different”, he said at the pre match conference.

Although there are technically better players, Peseiro chose Bameyi for his ability to play in multiple positions, including right center back and right back.

“I choose Bameyi because he is a defender ‚he can play right center back and right back. I can tell you, they are other players with the same level or better level but of course I didn’t choose the players. I kept belief in his quality and at the same time in some positions.

Peseiro emphasized that he wanted to build a balanced team and Bameyi’s versatility gave him an edge over other players, including Benjamin Frederick, whom he also likes.

“As you can see, I choose two right backs, two left backs, three centre backs and Bameyi who can play right back and centre back, four midfielders, four wingers and four strikers.

“We want to build a team with balance. There are other players who are better than Bameyi, okay I like the centre back (Benjamin Frederick) but can he do the same in the same position? No”, he concluded.

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