Brentford‘s right-back Michael Kayode has decided on his international future after a long-drawn-out saga about a potential switch to the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 21-year-old joined the Bees from Italian side Fiorentina last summer for €17.5m, and has featured in all but one of Brentford's games this season, showing consistency and versatility.
Last month, it was reported that top officials of the Nigeria Football Federation were preparing a direct meeting with the defender after receiving approval from head coach Eric Chelle.
Born in Italy to Yoruba parents, Kayode is eligible to represent Nigeria since he hasn't gotten a call-up from the Italian senior side. He's also not oblivious to the Green and Whites' interest.
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“I’m happy that the Nigerian people are happy for me. The opportunity to play for both is amazing,” the youngster previously said.
Michael Kayode: Brentford's defender picks Italy over Super Eagles
Legendary Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon previously urged the Italian FA to tie Kayode to Gli Azzuri before he changes his mind. While a call-up to the senior team is yet to happen, the former Fiorentina defender revealed he knows where his heart is.
“I will always give priority to Italy: even at youth level, I grew up wearing the Azzurri shirt,” Kayode told Tuttosport.
“I hope to achieve this dream as soon as possible, but I have no doubt about which path to choose.”
The 21-year-old also added that he had discussions with former Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso before the World Cup play-offs in March, but he wasn't eventually called up.
“Yes, we also had dinner with other [Italian] Premier League players,” Kayode admitted.
“I was doing well, I felt involved even without being called up for the play-offs.
“For now, I’m only focused on qualifying for Europe with Brentford. We can aim to qualify for the cup until the end, so we don’t want to let our guard down.
“The Azzurri shirt would be an enormous achievement, unthinkable until a few years ago, but I’ll think about it in a few weeks.”
Brentford are currently 8th on the English Premier League table, two points outside of the top seven places. The Bees have never played in a major European competition (Champions League, Europa League, or Conference League) in their 136-year history.
