Najeeb Yakubu has naturalised for Niger
Former Ghana U-17 defender Najeeb Yakubu has shared details of what he said was unfair treatment he experienced, which ultimately led him to pledge allegiance to Niger.
Najeeb revealed that during his youth national team career, he often felt like an outsider. He recounted that his passport mysteriously went missing during a trip, and on one occasion, he was sacked from camp on the same day he arrived.
He attributed such treatment as one of the reasons why many players from Ghana’s 2017 U-17 squad struggled to transition to the senior national team.
The right-back recalled that during his time with the U-20 squad, then-head coach Jimmy Cobblah instructed players from the U-17 level to train separately from the main team during preparations for the U-20 AFCON qualifiers.
He explained that the frustrating situation led to some players, including himself, leaving camp.
“During Jimmy’s time, we were all there—Arko, Razak, Iddriss, Eric Ayiah, Abu Sadick—but we did not get the opportunity to play. We didn’t feel part of the team. It wasn’t like the U-17 team, so we didn’t feel okay. We packed our bags and left,” he said in an interview with JoySports.
“It’s not about us not being mentally strong. The team would be training, and we were made to sit and watch. If you’re creating competition, that’s fine, but you don’t make it one-sided. It doesn’t help the team or the country as a whole. From what I saw, it was from Jimmy.”
Najeeb also incidented that he was recalled after leaving camp but was sacked from camp just hours after arriving.
“They called me again when I was in Ukraine. I came with Leveh and Toku (two teammates from the Ghana U-17 squad). If I had arrived today, I played today, and they packed my bags today. Imagine.”
“I arrived around 5 a.m. and was dropped from the team the same day. I played a game the same day against Hearts of Oak in Tema. That was their last game before travelling to Togo. I was very disappointed. It wasn’t the first time, and it kept happening.”
Najeeb said he did not feel appreciated during his time with the Ghana national teams, leading him to accept Niger’s offer.
“I didn’t feel loved, so I had to go where I felt loved. During that period, Niger was calling me. I went to Niger in 2015, and they kept reaching out. I’d had enough of this, so I decided to go where I’m loved.”
He also narrated how his passport mysteriously went missing during his time with the U-23 team under coach Paa Kwesi Fabin.
“When Paa Kwesi took over the U-23 team, they went to play friendly games in Japan. I trained with them for a week and made the final list, but when we went to the embassy, my passport wasn’t there. ‘Where is my passport?’ It wasn’t part of the group. How would you feel?” he asked.
He continued: “It wasn’t missing—they took it off the list. At the embassy, my name was called, but my passport wasn’t there. I had to go to the GFA office, and when I got there, they asked me to write a letter to retrieve it. You’ve dropped me, no problem, but now you don’t want to give me my passport?”
Born and raised in Ghana but of Nigerien descent, Najeeb Yakubu pledged allegiance to Niger and debuted for their national team in 2022. He was part of the squad that defeated Ghana 2-1 during the 2025 AFCON qualifiers, featuring for 45 minutes in that match.
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