7 NPFL stars Eric Chelle must call up for the 2026 Unity Cup

The Unity Cup is back and Nigeria’s Super Eagles will defend their title at The Valley in Charlton, South London, from May 26 to 30, facing Zimbabwe, Jamaica and India in a four-nation knockout tournament.

Eric Chelle has said he will watch the NPFL run-in closely and that’s good because the domestic league has given him seven (7) names he would be wrong to ignore.

The Brighton & Hove Albion academy boy came back home and became the best creator in Nigerian football.

Ayobami Junior, known as Baggio, plays for Shooting Stars in Ibadan and leads the NPFL with 11 assists this season.

He is not just distributing, he is reading games at a level most midfielders in this league simply cannot match.

His three assists in a single match against Warri Wolves in February made him the first player to do that in the NPFL since 2025.

The European education shows every time he picks up the ball. Chelle has never given the domestic league a playmaker of this profile. This is the moment.

A 21-year-old in his first-ever NPFL season. Twelve goals and outright leader of the scoring charts.

Arumala is a former Golden Eaglets player operating from the left flank for Ikorodu City, and his combination of pace, movement and composure in front of goal has been the defining attacking story of this NPFL campaign.

He did not ease into the league, he arrived and started scoring, with fans calling him Vinicius Jr twin. With Osimhen absent, Chelle needs forwards who believe in themselves. Arumala clearly does.

The captain. The conductor. Oyedokun has been the heartbeat of Ikorodu City's push for a top-three finish and CAF football in only their second NPFL season.

He plays in midfield, he leads by example, and he scored one of the most important goals in the league this season, that left-footed strike against Warri Wolves when the game needed a leader to step forward. He did.

Chelle talks about wanting players who carry responsibility. Oyedokun wears it every week.

Three Ikorodu City players on one list is not bias. It is form. Michael Atata, nicknamed "The Wall," has kept 16 clean sheets in the NPFL this season, the most in the league.

He is 20 years old. He has commanded a backline, organised defenders older than him, and made saves that opposing coaches have cited by name in post-match interviews.

With Stanley Nwabali still searching for a club, there is a real conversation to be had about Nigeria's goalkeeping future. Atata is part of that conversation.

Finidi George leads the NPFL table. His best defender is Stephen Manyo. The Rivers United centre-back has been the backbone of the meanest defence in the league, composed, commanding in the air and intelligent in his reading of the game.

Finidi himself praised Manyo's performance after a standout display against Katsina United, saying: "He had a fantastic game."

When a Super Eagles legend singles out a domestic player in those terms, Chelle should be listening.

Right back. Marauding runner. Set-piece threat. Oputa has been one of the NPFL's most consistent full-backs this season, combining defensive discipline with the quality to get forward and deliver.

In a league where full-backs often become forgotten figures, Oputa has made sure nobody forgets him. Rangers are challenging for the title. He is one of the reasons why.

The second Rangers player and defender on the list. Chidozie Iwundu is potentially the standout defender on the list give he comes with presence in both boxes.

Iwundu is the top-scoring defender in the league with a remarkable eight goals, most by a defender, and also making him one of the top scorers in the division.

The talented stopper also a former player of Akure side, Sunshine Stars, renowned for defenders after producing AFCON 2013 winners G​odfrey Oboabona and Kenneth Omeruo.

The Unity Cup is a friendly tournament, but it matters. And it is a perfect window to reward the men keeping Nigerian football alive while the internationals are overseas.