The Nigeria Squad for the 2002 World Cup Finals Pre-England  June 2002
Player	Birthdate	Age	Pos	Club	App	G
8. Adepoju, Mutiu	22 December 1970	31	M	UD Salamanca SAD, Spain	49	5
13. Afolabi, Rabiu	18 April 1980	22	D	Royal Standard de Liege, Belgium	5	0
17. Aghahowa, Julius	12 February 1982	20	F	FC Shakhtar Donetsk, Ukraine	19	12
18. Akwuegbu, Benedict	3 November 1974	27	F	Shenyang Ginde, China	16	5
3. Babayaro, Celestine Hycieth	29 August 1978	23	D	Chelsea FC, England	26	0
15. Christopher, Justice Longs	24 December 1981	20	M	Royal Antwerp FC, Belgium	9	0
12. Ejide, Augustine Amamchukwu	8 April 1984	18	G	Gabros International FC	3	0
19. Ejiofor, Eric Okechukwu	21 July 1979	22	D	Maccabi Haifi FC, Israel	12	0
22. Enyeama, Vincent	29 August 1982	19	G	Enyimba FC	2	0
7. Ikedia, Pius	11 July 1980	21	F	Amsterdamsche FC Ajax, Netherlands	11	0
4. Kanu, Nwankwo	1 August 1976	25	F	Arsenal FC, England	38	6
	Nwankwo Kanu is injured and unavailable for selection.
11. Lawal, Garba	22 May 1974	28	M	SV Roda Juliana Combinatie Kerkrade, Netherlands	35	4
20. Obiorah, James Chibuzor	24 August 1978	23	M	FC Lokomotiv Moskva, Russia	2	1
9. Ogbeche, Bartholomew Owogbalor	1 October 1984	17	D	Paris Saint-Germain FC, France	6	0
10. Okocha, Augustine Azuka	14 August 1973	28	M	Paris Saint-Germain FC, France	58	8
5. Okoronkwo, Isaac	1 May 1978	24	D	FC Shakhtar Donetsk, Ukraine	14	0
23. Opabunmi, Femi	3 March 1985	17	F	Shooting Stars SC	2	1
1. Shorunmu, Ike Ibrahim	16 October 1967	34	G	FC Luzern, Switzerland	36	0
16. Sodje, Efetobore Peter	5 October 1972 born in London	29	D	Crewe Alexandra FC, England	8	1
14. Udeze, Ifeanyi	21 July 1980	21	D	Panthessalonikios Athlitikos Omilos Constantinoupoliton, Greece	16	0
21. Utaka, John Chukwudi	8 January 1982	20	F	Al Sadd SC, Qatar	5	0
6. West, Taribo	26 March 1974	28	D	unattached, after being released by 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Germany	40	0
2. Yobo, Joseph Phillip	6 September 1980	21	D	Olympique de Marseille, France	16	0

Squad details correct up to and including Nigeria's match against Sweden on 7 June 2002.

Diary

Sunday, 19 May 2002 - Festus Onigbonde has left Finidi George out of his World Cup squad. The decision was widely expected as the Ipswich Town forward has not been picked for Nigeria's recent friendly matches.

Tuesday, 21 May 2002 - Left-back Celestine Babayaro will be given until 30 May to prove his fitness ahead of the Finals. He is suffering from a thigh problem which has caused him to miss the last few matches of Chelsea's season, as well as the friendly with Ireland last week. Ajax defender Ogbonna Kanu has been placed on standby as a precaution.

Tuesday, 28 May 2002 - Babayaro has arrived in Japan and begun full training, relieving doubts that me might have had to withdraw from the squad. He survived his first training session with no ill-effects. 

Sunday, 2 June 2002 - A single Gabriel Batistuta goal sinks Nigeria in their opening World Cup Finals match. However, Nwankwo Kanu may miss Nigeria's next match against Sweden on Friday, after he was elbowed in the ribs and had to be substituted shortly after half-time.

Friday, 7 June 2002 - Sweden striker Henrik Larsson sent Nigeria crashing out of the World Cup with two goals in a pulsating encounter in Kobe. Julius Aghahowa had given Nigeria a surprise lead after 27 minutes after a period of sustained Swedish pressure.

Saturday, 8 June 2002 - Jay Jay Okacha has announced that he will retire from international football after the England match on Wednesday. The 28 year old said he wants to give younger players a chance.

____________________

CG