Flying Eagles Open Training Camp In Chile Ahead Of FIFA U20 World Cup
By AUGUSTUS ISICHEI
NIGERIA’S U20 men’s team, the Flying Eagles, have settled in Santiago, Chile, to begin preparations for the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup.
The squad, led by head coach Aliyu Zubairu, arrived on Tuesday after a long trip from Nigeria. They spent the day recovering from travel fatigue and will commence double training sessions from Wednesday at 7:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. local time.
Nigeria has been drawn in Group F alongside Norway, Saudi Arabia, and Colombia. The Flying Eagles will face Norway in their opening match on 29 September, before clashing with Saudi Arabia on 3 October and Colombia on 6 October.
Zubairu, who guided Nigeria to third place at the 2025 CAF U20 AFCON in Egypt, said his ambition is to take the team beyond the country’s historic runs to the U20 World Cup final in 1989 and 2005.
To sharpen their form, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has arranged two friendlies against host nation Chile and Australia during the team’s 12-day training camp.
The 24th edition of the FIFA U20 World Cup will run in Chile from 27 September to 19 October.
