Nigerian Football Federation delegation to pay solidarity visit to Ikeme in the UK as he fights leukaemia

NIGERIAN Football Federation (NFF) officials plan to visit Super Eagles goalkeeper Carl Ikeme currently hospitalised in England after being diagnosed as having with acute leukaemia.

Ikeme, 31, who mans goal for Nigeria and English Championship side Wolverhampton Wanderers, was recently found to have leukaemia, otherwise known as cancer of the blood during a pre-season medical. He has since begun receiving treatment amid an outpouring of support from across world football.

To show its solidarity with the goalkeeper, the NFF will be sending a five-man delegation to England to visit Ikeme. NFF technical committee member Etubom Paul Bassey, said it is putting the arrangements in place while awaiting the return of the federation's president, Amaju Pinnick who has travelled outside the country.

He also reassured Nigerians that the unavailability of Ikeme from the epic 2018 Russia World Cup qualifier against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon will not affect the team’s performance. He also appealed to Nigerians not to write off the Super Eagles because of the bad game they had against the Bafana Bafana of South Africa where the visitors ran away with a 2-0 victory in an 2019 African Cup of Nations qualifier.

Mr Bassey said: “We are making concrete arrangements to pay a solidarity visit to our goalkeeper, Carl Ikeme whom you know is down and admitted in a London hospital. All we are waiting is for the NFF president to return and give the necessary approval.

"The boy has been very committed to national assignments and it is only natural that we visit him in this trying time and let him know we are with him in prayers. Again talking about the crucial game we have against Cameroon in August, let me also say that the absence of Ikeme will not affect our performance because both the coach and the players know what is at stake and how important that game is to our booking a place at the World Cup.”