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81-520: As of November 27, 2019. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules . Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality. This article about a soccer club from California is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . FIFA eligibility rules In association football , the FIFA eligibility rules are the eligibility criteria established by FIFA (International Association Football Federation),

162-537: A forward or winger . He is currently a first team coach at Ipswich Town . Aluko began his career at Birmingham City , graduating from the club's academy to make his senior debut in 2007. He joined Aberdeen on loan in the 2007–08 season and was loaned to Blackpool at the beginning of the 2008–09 season. After just two appearances for Blackpool, he signed for Aberdeen permanently in August 2008. He left Aberdeen in July 2011 at

243-477: A "clear connection" to a country that they had not been born in but wished to represent. This ruling explicitly stated that, in such scenarios, the player must have at least one parent or grandparent who was born in that country, or the player must have been resident in that country for at least two years. In November 2007, FIFA President Sepp Blatter told the BBC: "If we don't stop this farce, if we don't take care about

324-469: A 1–2 aggregate loss over two legs in the semi-finals. He made his first appearance of the 2017–18 season in the opening match against Norwich City on 5 August, with the match ending in a 1–1 draw. He started Fulham's opening four league matches of the season, before leaving to join Reading at the end of August. On 29 August 2017, Aluko joined Reading for an undisclosed fee, signing a four-year deal, with

405-409: A 5–0 home win against Kilmarnock on 19 February. He did not score again for the rest of the season, scoring twice in 33 appearances in total during the season. He left the club at the end of his contract in July 2011. Following his release from Aberdeen, Aluko had a trial with Juventus prior to the 2011–12 season. He then went on trial at Rangers . Rangers were impressed with Aluko and offered him

486-411: A FIFA-affiliated association. In 2004, FIFA introduced a rule requiring players to demonstrate a "clear connection" to any country they wish to represent, a response to the trend of naturalising foreign players. FIFA has the authority to overturn results of international matches featuring ineligible players. In January 2021, FIFA revamped the eligibility system, allowing players tied to one nationality

567-623: A UK nation, Northern Ireland attempted to call up Germany-born Maik Taylor, Nigeria-born Dele Adebola and Jamaica-born David Johnson. McMenemy's successor Sammy McIlroy was not pleased with his predecessor's policy, upon being appointed as Northern Ireland manager he said: "It's farcical chasing players with absolutely no connection to our country." Former FA executive David Davies confirmed that England had once considered calling up Italian Carlo Cudicini , Brazilian Edu and Frenchmen Steed Malbranque and Louis Saha during Sven-Göran Eriksson 's time as England manager. In February 2004, there

648-535: A brace in a 2–2 draw against Cambridge United . Three days later, he scored again in a 4–0 win against Portsmouth . Aluko quickly became an important part of the Ipswich squad, as the most senior player in the team during his first season at the club. He captained the team in FA Cup and EFL Trophy matches during the first half of the season. Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna praised him for his contributions both on and off

729-522: A common nationality with at least one other FIFA member association. In these instances, under Article 6.1 of the Regulations Governing the Applications of Statutes, FIFA Statutes (nationality entitling players to represent more than one association), if a player was not born in the member associations' territory and does not have a parent or grandparent that was born in the territory, the player

810-447: A contract extension, this blow to Hull came shortly after Aluko tore his Achilles again which would see him out of action until February. He signed a new two-and-a-half-year contract with the club on 3 January 2014, telling the club website "I'm happy to be extending my stay here and I was always hopeful it would get sorted". On 17 May 2014 he played as a substitute in the 2014 FA Cup Final against Arsenal . Aluko's first appearance of

891-452: A contract, but the move was held up while Aberdeen and Rangers negotiated compensation. Aluko signed for Rangers until the end of the season on 24 November 2011 after a deal was agreed. He made his Rangers debut in a 0–1 away loss to Kilmarnock on 27 November. Aluko was banned for two games for diving to win a penalty in a match between Rangers and Dunfermline on 3 December 2011. Rangers' manager, Ally McCoist , stated "The three gentlemen on

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972-660: A country in virtue of that country's laws shall be eligible to play for a national or representative team of that country." As there is no United Kingdom national team, he was eligible to choose a "representative team of the country" and opted for Northern Ireland. Eric Young (born in Singapore) and Pat Van Den Hauwe (born in Belgium) had both previously opted for Wales under the same rules in 1985 and 1990 respectively, although both grew up in England; Australian Tony Dorigo had been denied

1053-518: A friendly against Belarus under-19. He was involved in two of the goals in a 4–0 win. He was selected in the 23-man provisional squad for the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship but did not make the final 18. Aluko was named in the squad for the Nigeria under-20 national football team for the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt. He played in games against Venezuela, Spain and Tahiti. Aluko

1134-613: A history with Northern Ireland. Sanchez spoke of his frustration with the rule: "I must stick by the British agreement which says that you shouldn't approach a player unless he has family ties with that particular country. "It's frustrating but my job is to manage the Northern Ireland international team and theirs (the Irish FA ) is to make policy. "I must continue to work with the players I have and I'm very happy to do that. The wording of

1215-475: A late substitute in a League Cup tie against Hereford United . In August 2007, Aluko joined Scottish Premier League club Aberdeen on loan until January 2008. He made his debut for Aberdeen as a late substitute in the UEFA Cup group match against Panathinaikos on 25 October 2007. He scored his first goal for the club the following week, opening the scoring in a 2–0 victory over Dundee United . In January,

1296-623: A nation). In February 2009, the Scottish FA's Gordon Smith put forward a proposal that would allow players educated in the FA's territory who otherwise had no blood connections to the nation to become eligible to represent the nation. The rule was ratified by FIFA in October 2009. Sone Aluko Omatsone Folarin Aluko (born 19 February 1989) is a professional football coach and former player who played as

1377-399: A new nationality , states: Any player who refers to art. 5 par. 1 to assume a new nationality and who has not played international football [in a match (either in full or in part) in an official competition of any category or any type of football] shall be eligible to play for the new representative team only if he fulfils one of the following conditions: a) He was born on the territory of

1458-478: A new ruling came into effect that permitted a player to represent one country at youth international level and another at senior international level, provided that the player applied before their 21st birthday. The first player to do so was Antar Yahia , who played for the France under-18s before representing Algeria in qualifiers for the 2004 Olympic Games . More recent examples include Sone Aluko , who has caps for

1539-699: A player switching international football nationalities is José Altafini , who played for Brazil in the 1958 FIFA World Cup and for Italy in the subsequent 1962 FIFA World Cup . Other 20th-century examples of players representing two or three separate countries are: This does not include the hundreds of players whose teams were affected by changes to geopolitical borders e.g. East Germany / Germany , Soviet Union / Ukraine , Yugoslavia / Croatia . Furthermore, some international players have played for another FIFA-recognised country in unofficial international matches, i.e. fixtures not recognised by FIFA as full internationals. This category includes: In January 2004,

1620-459: A player to have a choice of representing several national teams. It is not uncommon for national team managers and scouts to attempt to persuade players to change their FIFA nationality; in June 2011, for example, Scotland manager Craig Levein confirmed that his colleagues had started a dialogue with United States under-17 international Jack McBean in an attempt to persuade him to represent Scotland in

1701-403: A team of Scots than win with a team of foreigners. This is not a club side we're talking about it's SCOTLAND...I know the players will definitely be against it". Ahead of a meeting with the other home associations, SFA executive David Taylor urged caution ahead of calls to opt out of the agreement. He said "We have to watch it does not become a free-for-all with the home countries trying to get

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1782-452: A two-year deal with Hull City . He made his debut in a home match against Brighton & Hove Albion on 18 August. On 1 September 2012 he scored his first goal for the club against Bolton Wanderers at the KC Stadium . After the international break, Aluko scored his second goal for Hull City in the following game against Millwall to make it 4–0 before half-time, with Hull going onto win

1863-665: Is able to represent another member association that shares the same common nationality after five years residency. There has been a series of additional agreements between national football associations of the United Kingdom ( The Football Association , the Scottish Football Association , the Football Association of Wales and the Irish Football Association ), the latest of which came in 2010 and

1944-539: The 2010 FIFA World Cup , but failed to make the final cut. He was finally called up by former Nigerian coach Stephen Keshi and therefore has a chance to add to his one cap against Republic of Ireland in May 2009 after he represented England at various age-group levels. He was brought into the squad to face Namibia and Malawi in the World Cup Qualifiers in the month of June 2012, but was an unused sub for both games. Aluko

2025-637: The England under-19s and Nigeria , and Andrew Driver , a former England under-21 representative who is committed to the Scotland national team. In March 2004, FIFA amended its wider policy on international eligibility. This was reported to be in response to a growing trend in some countries, such as Qatar and Togo , to naturalise players born and raised elsewhere who have no apparent ancestral links to their new country of citizenship. An emergency FIFA committee ruling judged that players must be able to demonstrate

2106-862: The Regulations Governing the Application of the FIFA Statutes . Friendly match appearances do not commit a player to one country; Jermaine Jones played several friendlies for Germany but made his debut for the United States in 2010. Thiago Motta had three caps for Brazil in matches deemed friendlies for Brazil (participation in the CONCACAF Gold Cup as a non-conference guest team) and went on to represent Italy for five years. Diego Costa represented Brazil in two friendlies before switching his allegiances to Spain in 2013, going on to represent

2187-484: The UEFA European Championship ). However, appearing in a tournament qualifier would not prohibit a change of eligibility. Furthermore, players who played for their home country but not at senior level, who were under 21 at the time and have since lived in a new country for five years or more can apply for the right to represent their new place of residence. This also applies to players that began living on

2268-559: The (English) Football Association (FA) had advised the player's agent that the international change of allegiance could go ahead. However, the SFA discovered that as he had an English mother, he was not able to represent any Home nation other than England as a result. The SFA had chosen to abide by the agreement; unlike the Irish Football Association (IFA), who in addition to courting David Johnson had capped Germany-born Maik Taylor

2349-485: The 2014–15 season came in Hull's UEFA Europa League tie against AS Trenčín on 31 July. He scored his first goal of the season in the second leg of the tie against Trenčín, netting an 80th-minute winner in a 2–1 victory. His first Premier League goal of the season came on 3 December when he scored the equaliser in a 1–1 draw against Everton . Aluko scored twice in 31 appearances during the season, as Hull suffered relegation from

2430-482: The England B team and had been an unused substitute for the England under-21s. In late September 1999, the Ipswich Town forward was called up by Wales (and withdrew from the squad due to injury) and later Scotland. The Welsh and Scottish FAs believed he was eligible to play for them. Johnson was a Jamaican immigrant who was raised by foster parents in England, and he believed he could choose which UK nation to represent;

2511-546: The Premier League after finishing 18th. He continued to feature regularly for Hull during the 2015–16 season, scoring a late winner in a 2–1 win against Fulham on 19 August. His next goal did not come until March, when he scored an equalising goal in a 1–1 draw with Nottingham Forest . He helped Hull to a 4th-place league finish, qualifying for the Championship play-offs as a result, with Hull going onto win promotion back to

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2592-402: The Premier League after winning the play-off final against Sheffield Wednesday . On 2 June 2016, it was announced that Aluko and teammate Ryan Taylor would leave the club prior to their contract expiry. On 8 July 2016, Aluko joined Fulham on a free transfer. Aluko signed a two-year deal with an option for a further year. He made his debut for Fulham in a 1–0 win over Newcastle United on

2673-532: The United Kingdom, are represented by constituent associations (England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland), while other associations represent regions not typically recognized as independent countries, such as dependent territories (e.g., Gibraltar ), autonomous states or territories (e.g., the Faroe Islands , Kosovo ), and enclaves, principalities, or microstates (e.g., San Marino ). Not all countries have

2754-565: The agreement was adjusted and published by FIFA in December 2006: 3. British associations 134 England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. 135 e.g. a player who was born on the Cayman Islands and holds British nationality In October 2008, Spanish striker Nacho Novo said that he would apply for a British passport if it meant he'd become eligible to play for Scotland . The SFA stated that he would not be eligible as they would abide by

2835-457: The agreement. The agreement was completely revised in 2009 following a rewrite of the FIFA statutes in 2008. The loophole regarding British players born abroad and selecting a national team had been closed and then reopened. The revised ruling also removed the possibility of ineligibility due to a foreign-born adopted player having no parental or grand-parental links to a nation, as it is based on where

2916-482: The best players available," "It goes to the heart of why we exist as a separate country and could force people into asking why we do not have a UK football team." On 1 March 2004, the four British associations voted to retain the agreement. In January 2006, Northern Ireland manager Lawrie Sanchez had his hopes of bringing in players born outside Northern Ireland – but who held a British passport – dashed. Irish FA chiefs told Sanchez he could only select players who have

2997-432: The chance to play for his birth nation by his club manager at Aston Villa due to the travelling distances and low standards of opposition, and successfully obtained citizenship in 1986 in order to play for England – but had no relevant British ancestry and could have represented any of the home nations. Players in the same situation today would only be allowed to represent the territory of their (grand)parent's birthplace as

3078-616: The clause has been amended to refer to the Football Association's "territory" and not "country". The four associations met on 27 February 1993 at Hanbury Manor in Hertfordshire. The Scottish Football Association (SFA) released minutes from the meeting to the press. On the occasion of the meeting of the International Football Association Board on 27 February 1993 the four British associations ratified

3159-408: The club holding an option to extend it, Aluko lodged an objection against the contract being transferred from Rangers to a new company set up by Charles Green. PFA Scotland had previously commented that players were entitled to become free agents if they objected to the transfer. Aluko raised a constructive dismissal claim against Rangers. On 25 July 2012, it was confirmed that Aluko had signed

3240-592: The club to clinch Aberdeen's first home win of the season, a single-goal victory over Kilmarnock on 1 November. Aluko went on to win the SPL Young Player of the Month award for November 2008. Aluko featured regularly following his return to Aberdeen, playing 37 matches during the 2008–09 season, scoring 4 goals. He continued to be a key part of the Aberdeen first-team during the 2009–10 season. He scored his first goal of

3321-434: The club, while also spending time out on loan at Beijing Renhe in 2019. In August 2021, he signed for Ipswich Town where he remained until his retirement from football in May 2024. Born in England, Aluko was capped by England at all youth levels up to under-19 before accepting an offer to play for Nigeria. He won caps at under-20 and under-23 levels, before making his senior debut in 2009. His sister Eniola Aluko

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3402-447: The course of the 2020–21 season. Aluko was released by Reading when his contract expired at the end of the 2020–21 season. Aluko joined Ipswich Town on a free transfer on 6 August 2021, signing a one-year contract with the option to extend the deal by an additional year. He made his debut in a 0–1 loss against Newport County in an EFL Cup first-round tie on 10 August. On 16 October 2021, Aluko scored his first goals for Ipswich with

3483-721: The end of his contract. Aluko signed for Rangers in November 2011 and scored 12 goals in 21 appearances during the 2011–12 season. After one season at Rangers, he returned to England to join Hull City . He made over 100 appearances for Hull during a four-year spell at the club, helping Hull win promotion to the Premier League in 2013 and reach the 2014 FA Cup Final . He left Hull to join Fulham in 2016, before joining Reading in 2017. He spent four seasons at Reading, making over 100 appearances for

3564-540: The end of the 2019 season . He made 16 appearances in the Chinese Super League during his loan spell, scoring 3 goals. After returning from his loan spell at Beijing Renhe in January, he made his first appearance for Reading in an FA Cup third-round tie against former loan club Blackpool. He made his first league appearance of the season in a 0–1 loss against Bristol City. Aluko struggled for regular game time during

3645-515: The fee later being reported to be £7.5 million. He made his Reading debut in a 0–1 away loss against Bristol City on 9 September. He scored his first goal for the club on 31 October, netting the final goal in a 3–1 win against Nottingham Forest . He scored again in the following match in a 4–2 win against Derby County on 4 November. On 30 March, he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win against Rotherham United . Aluko scored 3 goals in 40 appearances during his first season at Reading. Aluko started in

3726-468: The following agreement, which came into force on 1 February 1993, on the criteria which should determine the eligibility of the player to be selected for one of the national teams of the British associations: David Johnson was a Jamaican international who had played four games for the Caribbean nation; his most recent game was a friendly against United States on 9 September 1999. He had previously played for

3807-506: The following day as a late substitute in the Seasiders' 0–1 home defeat to Bristol City . He made 2 appearances for Blackpool before returning from loan at the end of August. On transfer deadline day , 1 September 2008, Aluko returned to Aberdeen on a permanent basis, signing a three-year contract for a fee of £50,000. He made his return in a 1–2 home defeat to Hamilton Academical on 13 September, and scored his first goal since rejoining

3888-449: The four home associations it is not enough any more." The agreement is often erroneously thought to be a response to cases similar to Maik Taylor , who was born in Germany to an English father and chose to represent Northern Ireland at international level despite having no ties to the nation. Taylor was called up to Northern Ireland in 1998, five years after the 1993 (gentlemen's) agreement

3969-469: The future. Gareth Bale was asked about a possibility to play for England , being of English descent through his grandmother, but ultimately opted to represent Wales , his country of birth. In June 2009, FIFA Congress passed a motion that removed the age limit for players who had already played for a country's national team at youth level to change national associations. This ruling features in Article 18 of

4050-410: The game 2–3. This made it five goals in five games for Aluko and eight goals for the season. In November 2012, Aluko picked up an Achilles injury, initially ruling him out for a month, which Hull City incidentally won all four games he was missing, but later in January the injury flared up again. This meant he would require surgery, with fears he would be out for 6 months, but after successful surgery, he

4131-744: The governing body for rugby union , specifies that if a player has been legally adopted under the laws of the relevant country, descent is traced through the adoptive parent(s). This replacement also applies in cases where the player was not adopted, but one or both biological parents were themselves adopted. In September 2020, the 70th edition of the FIFA Congress approved a rule change that now allows players to switch 3 years later if they have played no more than three competitive matches at senior level prior to them turning 21 including no appearances in FIFA World Cup finals matches or continental finals (e.g.

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4212-495: The invaders from Brazil towards Europe, Asia and Africa then, in the 2014 or the 2018 World Cup, out of the 32 teams you will have 16 full of Brazilian players." The residency requirement for players lacking birth or ancestral connections with a specific country was extended from two to five years in May 2008 at FIFA's Congress as part of Blatter's efforts to preserve the integrity of competitions involving national teams. The relevant current FIFA statute, Article 7: Acquisition of

4293-490: The latter at the 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cups . Apostolos Giannou represented Greece in a friendly in 2015, before switching his allegiances to Australia , making his debut for the latter in March 2016. A FIFA Player's Status Committee is responsible for making such judgements. Under FIFA rules, eligibility by descent is strictly limited to biological descent; adoption is not considered at all. By contrast, World Rugby ,

4374-494: The loan deal was extended to keep Aluko at Aberdeen for the rest of the season. On 14 February 2008, as part of a performance which earned him the man-of-the-match award, he scored Aberdeen's second goal in a 2–2 draw against Bayern Munich in the UEFA Cup Round of 32. He scored 4 goals in 31 appearances during his loan at Aberdeen. Aluko signed for Blackpool on a month's emergency loan on 8 August 2008, and made his debut

4455-475: The match 4–1. On 2 October, Aluko made scored his third goal in a Hull City shirt by scoring a wonderful strike from 20 yards out into the top corner against Blackpool. His next goal came at the end of October against Bristol City, himself and Jay Simpson linked up to put Hull 1–0 ahead inside 8 minutes, to which the commentator compared the goal to Barcelona. He bagged another goal in the next game, at home to Barnsley , with teammate Ahmed Elmohamady 's cross

4536-521: The men's football tournament at the 2015 Pacific Games , which also determines the 2016 Oceania Olympic Football qualifier, Deklan Wynne , who was born in South Africa and raised in New Zealand from early childhood, played in the semi-final for New Zealand, who won the match 3–0. After the game, a protest was lodged by their opponents Vanuatu , on the basis that Wynne was not an eligible player. As Wynne

4617-414: The one-year extension in his contract having made 36 appearances in all competitions during the season, keeping him at the club until 2023. After helping Ipswich to promotion back to the Premier League, Aluko announced his retirement from football on 6 May 2024. Aluko represented England at under-16, under-17 and under-18 level before making his debut for the England under-19 team on 11 September 2007 in

4698-589: The opening day of the 2016–17 season. On 13 August 2016, Aluko scored his first goal for Fulham, the opener in a 2–1 victory over Preston North End . He quickly became a key part of the Fulham first-team during his first season at the club, starting 44 league games and making 50 appearances in all competitions, scoring 9 goals. He helped Fulham reach the EFL Championship play-offs following a 6th placed league finish, with Fulham eventually losing out to Reading following

4779-424: The opening match of the 2018–19 season against Derby County, a match which ended in a 1–2 loss. He scored his first goal of the season in the reverse fixture against Derby, a match which also ended in a 1–2 win for Derby. He featured less frequently for Reading during his second season at the club, making 20 appearances in all competitions, scoring once. On 26 February 2019, Aluko joined Beijing Renhe on loan until

4860-489: The option to switch allegiance to another nation. Fielding ineligible players can lead to sanctions, including the overturning of match results. Historically, it was possible for players to play for different national teams. For example, Alfredo Di Stéfano played for Argentina (1947) and Spain (1957–61). Di Stefano's Real Madrid teammate Ferenc Puskás also played for Spain after amassing 85 caps for Hungary earlier in his career. A third high-profile instance of

4941-630: The panel have effectively called my player a cheat and a liar, neither of which he is". Aluko scored his first goal for Rangers in a 3–0 home win against Motherwell at Ibrox on 2 January. On 25 March 2012, Aluko scored the opening goal in Rangers' 3–2 victory over Celtic . He scored his first senior hat-trick in Rangers 4–0 victory at St Johnstone on the final day of the 2011–12 Scottish Premier League season. He scored 12 goals in 23 appearances during his first season at Rangers, his best goal return to date. In June 2012, with his contract set to expire but

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5022-418: The pitch; “I can't speak highly enough of him as a person really, around the place he's great with the younger players, he mentors, he speaks, he gives advice but he never sticks it in your face, he doesn't go around telling everyone that he's played in the Premier League, but he's there for advice whenever people need it. He has a quiet word in his own way whenever it's needed.” On 26 April 2022, Aluko activated

5103-455: The player is educated before the age of 18. The home nations have agreed to remove a clause that enables players to gain eligibility for one of the eight national teams due to residency. The FIFA statutes state that "Associations sharing a common nationality may make an agreement under which item (d) of par. 1 of this article is deleted completely or amended to specify a longer time limit". The clause removed is: (d) He has lived continuously on

5184-605: The previous year. Taylor was in the same situation as Johnson: he was born outside of the UK with one English parent. The Herald reported that "It is important to highlight, that under the agreement signed by the four British associations, the UK passport clause is only operative in the event that the player, his natural mother and father and his natural grandparents, are all born outside the United Kingdom". A Football Association of Wales (FAW) spokesman Cerri Stennett said that they were "extremely puzzled by this development" and they thought "he

5265-400: The relevant association; b) His biological mother or biological father was born on the territory of the relevant association; c) His grandmother or grandfather was born on the territory of the relevant association; d) He has lived continuously for at least five years after reaching the age of 18 on the territory of the relevant association. Under the criteria generally, it is possible for

5346-529: The season in a 1–3 loss against Celtic on 15 August. In total, Aluko scored 3 times in 26 appearances over the course of the season. Aluko made his first appearance of the 2010–11 season in Aberdeen's opening match of the campaign, starting the match in a 4–0 home win against Hamilton Academical at the Pittodrie Stadium . On 15 February, he scored his first goal of the season in a 1–2 home loss against Motherwell. He also scored in Aberdeen's following match,

5427-452: The second half of the 2019–20 season, making 6 appearances, with only 2 appearances coming in the league. He managed to work his way back into the Reading first-team during the 2020–21 season. He made his first appearance of the season in a 3–1 EFL Cup first round win against Colchester United on 5 September. On 21 November, Aluko scored his first goal of the season in a 2–4 defeat against Bournemouth . He scored twice in 36 appearances over

5508-637: The sport's governing body, to facilitate the selection of representative teams for international competitions. Specifically, FIFA maintains and implements rules determining a player's eligibility to represent a particular national team in officially sanctioned international competitions and friendly matches. Traditionally, athlete eligibility has been tied to legal nationality, allowing players with multiple nationalities to represent more than one country, especially after naturalisation. However, national teams are organised by national football associations, not all of which are affiliated with FIFA. Some countries, like

5589-598: The territory before the age of 10 for at least three years. FIFA also facilitates a reversal of a change request in certain specific circumstances. FIFA takes punitive action against teams that field ineligible players. In August 2011, FIFA expelled Syria from the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification process following the appearance of George Mourad in a senior qualification match against Tajikistan . Mourad had made friendly match appearances for Sweden earlier in his career, but had not requested permission from FIFA to change national associations before playing for Syria. At

5670-443: The territory of the relevant Association for at least two years If the home nations' associations had chosen not to remove or alter the 'd' clause and instead use the default FIFA statute clauses, players with a home nation nationality would be able to transfer to a club in another home nation and be eligible for that national team after a period of two years (providing they have not been capped or played in an official competition for

5751-544: Was 20 years old, it was impossible for him to have already lived in New Zealand for five years after the age of 18. This protest was upheld by the Oceania Football Confederation , resulting in New Zealand being disqualified and Vanuatu taking their place in the final. During the 2018 World Cup qualifiers Bolivia fielded Paraguayan ‑born Nelson David Cabrera (who had also played for Paraguay) in two matches—against Peru on 1 September 2016 (the match

5832-644: Was a lot of media speculation in Scotland about the possibility of Frenchman Didier Agathe and Italian Lorenzo Amoruso playing for Scotland. Berti Vogts , the German head coach of Scotland, appeared to be in favour of fielding the players. Scotland's playing captain Christian Dailly felt differently, telling the Daily Record newspaper that "I don't care if they call in Zinedine Zidane . I would rather lose with

5913-636: Was born in Nigeria and is a former professional footballer. She formerly played for Juventus and England . Aluko was born in Hounslow , London , and brought up from a young age in Birmingham . He progressed through Birmingham City 's youth system, which he joined at the age of eight. He was given a first-team squad number in the 2005–06 season , and was an unused substitute in a Premier League match against Arsenal at Highbury in October 2005. He made his first-team debut for Birmingham on 28 August 2007 as

5994-569: Was called up to the Nigerian national team for a friendly against the Republic of Ireland on 29 May 2009, an offer which with the support of his family he chose to accept. He made his full international debut in the starting eleven, forcing the Irish goalkeeper to save his 40-yard lobbed free kick and playing the first 61 minutes of the game. In April 2010, he was named in the provisional Nigeria squad for

6075-404: Was eligible to play for any of the four home countries and that's why Lawrie McMenemy wanted him for Northern Ireland as well." Stennett stated that FIFA gave clearance to Johnson switch allegiance to Wales' national squad and "he was on the substitute's bench for a match." Under Lawrie McMenemy 's stewardship, Northern Ireland went through a phase of trying to call up players who had no links to

6156-565: Was expected to be back in 2 months time. Aluko scored 8 goals in 24 appearances during the 2012–13 season, helping Hull win promotion to the Premier League following a second placed league finish in the Championship . Aluko made his Premier League debut in a 0–2 away defeat against Chelsea on 18 August. His first goal of the season, a 76th-minute "stunning volley", was Hull's winner in a 3–2 victory away to Newcastle United on 21 September. In November Steve Bruce announced that Aluko denied

6237-427: Was half-cleared and Aluko, unlike Barnsley's defenders, was alert to the ball and fired home from a tight angle. He then made it 3 in 3 and 6 goals for the season against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 6 November, putting in a free-kick from 25 yards into the bottom-left corner past Wolves goalkeeper Carl Ikeme . On 17 November, Aluko scored twice against former club Birmingham City to put Hull 0–2 up, they went on to win

6318-458: Was in place. The agreement was not applied when Taylor was called up by the IFA, possibly because in his case, neither the FA, SFA nor FAW was interested in capping him, unlike e.g. David Johnson (below) and so raised no objection. Taylor was eligible to play for Northern Ireland due to FIFA regulations allowing him to. The relevant statute of the time read: "Any player who is a naturalised citizen of

6399-481: Was included in a pre-selection for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations but had to renounce because of an injury. Nigeria later won the tournament. He scored his first goals for Nigeria against South Africa in a 2–2 draw on 19 November 2014 in the qualifying round for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations . Aluko's older sister, Eniola , is a former footballer who played for England 102 times at full international level; she played in two World Cup quarter finals and reached

6480-429: Was ratified by FIFA . In 1990, Nigel Spackman wanted to be called up by Scotland during his time at Rangers F.C. through his Scottish grandfather. However at the time, the four British Associations did not choose to accept players without parents pertaining to the nation. The Herald reported that "until recently that would have been enough to give him qualification to play for Scotland. But under an agreement by

6561-459: Was won 2–0 by Bolivia) and against Chile on 6 September 2016 (the match finished in a scoreless draw). Cabrera was subsequently found to be ineligible by FIFA, which resulted in the awarding of 3–0 wins for Bolivia's opponents, affecting the final standings in the table and contributing to Peru's qualification for the World Cup at the expense of Chile. There are 25 FIFA member associations that share

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