Former Golden Eaglets head coach Manu Garba reminisces on his days with Super Eagles defender Bruno Onyemaechi npflupdates.com reports.
   Bruno Onyemaechi made his debut for the Super Eagles of Nigeria during a 2023 AFCON qualifier fixture against Sao Tome and Principe last month.
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The Boavista defender, has since integrated himself as one of the best and most valuable players in the national team, starting in Nigeria’s international friendly game against Saudi Arabia few weeks ago.
The journey to becoming a professional wouldn’t be complete without the inclusion of coach Manu Garba. Garba based on his statement, was the one who identified and integrated the Imo State indigene into his Golden Eaglets team of 2017.
How coach Garba identified Bruno Onyemaechi in 2017
According to Garba, Bruno isn’t a natural defender, but used to play behind the striker; he was so good he named him Captain of his team.
“I remember him(Bruno Onyemaechi) as a member of my 2017 U-17 team. He was playing in a role behind the striker and he reminded me so much of Kelechi Iheanacho, that I even told Iheanacho when he visited us in camp. Onyeama like we call him back then was very good at shooting and also link up play very well. I name him my Captain,” Garba told Owngoal Nigeria.
Speaking further the football guru, highlighted that ‘Onyeama’ as he was fondly called back in 2017, were former teammates to Tolu Arokodare (now playing for KRC Genk), Igoh Ogbu (Slavia Prague) and Adebayo Adeleye (Hapoel Jerusalem).
“He plays as a Left-back now, but you can see that he won’t be lost further up the pitch. Like Igoh Ogbu at Slavia Prague, Tolu Arokodare at Genk and Adebayo Adeleye of Hapoel Jerusalem, they were all in my team of 2017,” he added.
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Bruno Onyemaechi is expected to maintain and his form, and make the final squad list for the 2023 AFCON tournament in Ivory Coast.
For the 34th edition of AFCON, Super Eagles are seeded in the same Group A as host nation Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau.
