The Republic of Ireland have handed a senior debut to a promising Nigerian-eligible forward Jaden Umeh, just two days after Plymouth Argyle's Owen Oseni made his first appearance for Nigeria at the Unity Cup, in what appears to be another battle over dual-nationality players involving the Super Eagles, allnigeriasoccer.com reports.
The move could effectively end Nigeria's hopes of persuading Umeh to switch allegiance in the future, with the Benfica forward now just three appearances away, including at least one competitive match, from becoming cap-tied to Ireland.
The Nigeria Football Federation recently pulled off a recruitment coup by luring highly-rated tri-national forward Owen Oseni to the Super Eagles.
The Irish-Nigerian-Ivorian attacker made his Super Eagles debut in the recent Unity Cup clash against Zimbabwe, replacing Philip Otele with 13 minutes remaining.
Nigeria fans could get another look at Oseni in the coming days as he was also included in the squad for the upcoming friendlies against Poland and Portugal.
Umeh is widely regarded as one of Ireland's brightest young talents, with the 18-year-old already making two appearances for the U21 side before earning his senior debut against Qatar on Thursday night.
Against Qatar, he came off the bench in the 75th minute to replace Lagos-born Sheffield United winger Chiedozie Ogbene.
Umeh impressed during the 2025–2026 UEFA Youth League campaign, finding the net against Chelsea, Slavia Prague and AZ Alkmaar, while also providing assists in victories over Qarabag, Inter Milan and AZ.
Ifeanyi Emmanuel
Photo Credit: fai.ie
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