William Troost-Ekong credits Stephen Keshi for his switch to Super Eagles

Troost-Ekong, born to a Nigerian father and a Dutch mother, made his debut for the Super Eagles in 2015 under Keshi after a notable season with Groningen. He previously represented the Netherlands at the U-19 and U-20 levels before deciding to play for Nigeria.

Speaking on the Hindsight Podcast, the 30-year-old discussed his journey to reconnect with his Nigerian heritage.

“I identified with Holland throughout my teens. I never really felt Dutch because my skin is not the same as theirs even though I’m light-skinned. In the same way, when I came back to Nigeria, my father stayed in Ikeja, they always said see oyinbo. So I think it was like a search for identity. When I was about 18, I felt like I wanted to know a bit more about my roots. I always wanted to play for the Super Eagles but it felt intangible at the time,” Troost-Ekong shared.

Troost-Ekong highlighted Keshi’s influence, noting that the legendary coach, who led Nigeria to victory in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, was instrumental in his decision.

“I wanted to play for Nigeria. After my first debut season in the Eredivisie, Stephen Keshi called me, out of the blue. I looked at my phone about five times just to be sure it wasn’t a prank call. We got talking and he told me he liked what I was doing and wanted me to join the Super Eagles, and I said yes. He asked if I wanted to tell my parents about it, but I told him I couldn’t wait, and that’s how the story started. We made the switch, and it was good. Vincent Enyeama was quite helpful, and I was nervous, but I haven’t looked back since,” he recounted.

Despite his contributions and reiterating his fitness, Troost-Ekong was not called up to the Super Eagles squad by coach Finidi George for their FIFA 2026 World Cup qualifying matches.