Emmanuel Ekong, Malmo’s New Signing, Open to Playing for Nigeria or Italy

Emmanuel Ekong, a new signing for Swedish club Malmo, has not ruled out the possibility of playing for Nigeria in the future.

Emmanuel is the son of Prince Ikpe Ekong, a former Nigerian midfielder who helped the Super Eagles finish third at the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations.

This week, Emmanuel signed a five-year contract with Malmo, returning to Swedish football after leaving Italian club Empoli. Now that his club future is settled, Emmanuel must decide which national team he wants to represent.

According to FIFA rules, players can represent a country based on where they were born, their parents’ origins, or where they have lived for at least five years. Emmanuel was born in Italy but is also eligible to play for Nigeria through his father and Sweden, where he grew up.

At 22 years old, Emmanuel made his competitive debut for Sweden’s U21 team three months ago in a European U21 Championship match against Georgia. Although he is currently linked to Sweden, he has not yet made a decision about playing for the senior team.

Speaking at Malmo’s training camp in Marbella, Ekong said: “I don’t know what the future holds. I can represent Nigeria and Italy too. But right now, I’m playing for Sweden. There’s a long way to go, and I want to do well here in Malmo. If the Swedish national team calls me, then we’ll see.”

Ekong added, “I can’t decide yet because I haven’t played for any other national team. I have to do well and see which teams are interested in me.”

In 2019, Ekong was considered by Nigeria’s U17 team for the World Cup but chose to focus on his career at Empoli instead.