Ever since his childhood, William Troost-Ekong has been a dreamer.

Over the years, that developed into him manifesting the future he wanted by writing it down.

Even in his wildest dreams, however, Troost-Ekong could not have penned a journey like the one he has had with Nigeria .

Born and raised in the Netherlands, he would visit his father in Nigeria during the holidays. But the idea of one day playing for and captaining the Super Eagles was so fanciful it did not cross his mind.

“I would dream big, bigger than other people believed in me or thought was possible,” Troost-Ekong tells Standard Sport .

“But to go in this direction with Nigeria, and be part of everything I have, I would not have been able to write it down. I’ve managed to live beyond my wildest dreams.”

The pain

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