Eric Chelle has underlined his commitment to keeping a close eye on Nigeria national team players by revealing that he regularly attends matches to monitor their performances and show his support.
The Malian tactician was among the 61,783 spectators at the Orange Vélodrome on February 3 as Marseille thrashed Rennes 3-0 in the Coupe de France.
However, Marseille's winter signing Tochukwu Nnadi was not included in the matchday squad, as the fixture came too soon for the midfielder following his deadline day move to the Ligue 1 giants from Zulte Waregem.
Although Nnadi did not feature, Chelle used the occasion to assess a dual-national player on his radar, Arsenal attacking midfielder Ethan Nwaneri.
The Super Eagles coach explained that he usually informs players ahead of time when he plans to watch them in action, believing that his presence can have a positive impact.
"Generally, I tell them. I tell them I am coming to watch the match," Chelle said to Algerian influencer Just Riadh.
"The last one I went to see was Tochukwu Nnadi when he signed for Marseille. I wanted to be there because I don't live far away. He came from Belgium and was arriving at a club like that, so for his first match, I wanted to be there," he added.
Chelle also confirmed that Ademola Lookman was aware of his plans to attend the UEFA Champions League encounter between Marseille and Atalanta in November 2025.
"Lookman came for the Champions League match against Marseille with Atalanta, aware that I was coming to watch the match, though Eddie went to see him at the hotel," Chelle said.
Chelle monitored Lookman for 75 minutes during Atalanta's 1-0 away victory over Marseille, before the former African Footballer of the Year was substituted for Yunus Musah.
Ifeanyi Emmanuel
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