Noah Atubolu Earns Germany Call-Up for March Friendlies
SC Freiburg goalkeeper Noah Atubolu has been called up to the Germany U21 squad for their upcoming international friendlies. The 21-year-old, who is also eligible to play for Nigeria, is part of the team that will face Slovakia on 21 March in Trnava and Spain on 25 March in Darmstadt.
Atubolu is set to make his 16th and 17th appearances for Germany U21s. His call-up comes shortly after he made history at Freiburg. Last weekend, he became the first Freiburg goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet for 510 minutes, breaking the club’s previous record held by Richard Golz since the 2001-2002 season.
Atubolu is one of seven German youth internationals who could represent Nigeria. He is joined in the U21 squad by Eintracht Frankfurt defender Pharrell Nnamdi Collins, who already has two caps at this level.
In addition, Germany’s U19 team has included Winners Osawe of FC Nuremberg and David Odogu of Wolfsburg. Both players were part of the team that won the 2023 FIFA U17 World Cup. The U19s will play European Championship qualifiers against Slovenia (19 March), Finland (22 March), and Ireland (25 March).
At U18 level, Wesley Adeh of Werder Bremen and Francis Onyeka of Bayer Leverkusen have been invited to a training camp in Spain. Freiburg’s Elijah Oguguo is on standby. The U18s will also play matches against Austria and the Netherlands during the camp, which runs from 16 to 24 March.
Meanwhile, FC Cologne’s Brian Adoga has been named in Germany’s U16 squad for their games against Italy on 21 and 24 March in Florence. Borussia Dortmund’s Desmond Ogochuku Ndlovu is on standby.
Seven Players Eligible for Nigeria Called Up by Germany:
- Noah Atubolu (SC Freiburg) – U21
- Pharrell Nnamdi Collins (Eintracht Frankfurt) – U21
- David Odogu (Wolfsburg) – U19
- Winners Osawe (FC Nuremberg) – U19
- Wesley Adeh (Werder Bremen) – U18
- Francis Onyeka (Bayer Leverkusen) – U18
- Brian Adoga (FC Cologne) – U16
