Revealed: Why Maduka Okoye chose Super Eagles over playing for Germany

Super Eagles and Udinese goalkeeper Maduka Okoye has revealed it was never on his mind to represent the German National team, Afrik Foot reports.

The 26-year-old was born in Düsseldorf, Germany, to a Nigerian father and German-French mother. Okoye holds Nigerian, French and German citizenship from his parents.

He went through the ranks at several clubs like Fortuna Düsseldorf, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, before finding his feet with Dutch side Sparta Rotterdam.

Super Eagles: Why Maduka Okoye chose Nigeria over Germany

He made his first appearance for the Super Eagles in October 2019, coming on as a substitute for Francis Uzoho in the final 27 minutes of the 1-1 draw against Brazil.

An unsuccessful spell at Watford followed in the EFL Championship before he found his feet again at Udinese.

Now in his third season with the Bianconeri, he revealed why it was a simple choice for him to make between choosing Nigeria and Die Mannschaft.

“I keep a lot of Nigeria inside of me and I’m very proud of it,” the 1.98m tall goalkeeper said in an interview with Sporty TV.

“I always knew I wanted to play for Nigeria, and back then, I didn’t have too many options because I went through the youth German selections, but when the time for Nigeria came, I knew it was a dream and it came through by God’s grace.

“I was watching the AFCON from home as a supporter like the other 200 million Nigerians. I think we deserved the cup finally, but the next year is another opportunity and we’ll do everything to bring it home,” Okoye concluded.

Okoye has helped Udinese to 11th place on the Serie A table, keeping five clean sheets in 21 games.