{"id":870257,"date":"2025-09-03T23:12:43","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T04:12:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/03\/in-training-hes-the-referee-why-nigeria-target-adarabioyo-stands-out-at-chelsea-on-and-off-the-pitch\/"},"modified":"2025-09-03T23:12:43","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T04:12:43","slug":"in-training-hes-the-referee-why-nigeria-target-adarabioyo-stands-out-at-chelsea-on-and-off-the-pitch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/03\/in-training-hes-the-referee-why-nigeria-target-adarabioyo-stands-out-at-chelsea-on-and-off-the-pitch\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cIn training, he\u2019s the referee\u201d \u2013 Why Nigeria target Adarabioyo stands out at Chelsea on and off the pitch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Soccer <\/p>\n

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\"Soccer<\/p>\n

Photo by IMAGO <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Marc Cucurella has lifted the lid on what makes Tosin Adarabioyo<\/a> such a unique presence at Chelsea, Soccernet.ng reports<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Spain international Cucurella has describing the Nigerian-eligible defender as one of the loudest and most influential figures in the Chelsea dressing room.<\/p>\n

Adarabioyo, 27, joined Chelsea<\/a> on a free transfer from Fulham in the summer of 2024 and immediately slotted into Enzo Maresca’s plans.<\/p>\n

\"Soccer
Photo by IMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In his first season, he helped the Blues clinch the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup, to boost his growing stature at Stamford Bridge.<\/p>\n

Cucurella, who has played alongside the centre-back since his arrival, says Adarabioyo\u2019s voice carries as much weight in training as his defending does on matchdays.<\/p>\n

\"Soccer
Chelsea stars Tosin Adarabioyo and Marc Cucurella. Photo by IMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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\u201cProbably Tosin [Adarabioyo],\u201d Cucurella told Chelseafc.com<\/a> when asked who the squad\u2019s loudest player is.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn training, he\u2019s the referee; he loves to speak. He\u2019s the man who always has something to say. Just in training, he\u2019s the referee, he puts his own rules, he decides everything!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"Soccer
Photo by IMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Get Our Sports News First \u2013 Join Our WhatsApp Channel Now!<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The former Barcelona and Getafe<\/a> defender even believes Adarabioyo could handle an emergency switch of positions if required.<\/p>\n

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\u201cProbably I would choose myself, but if not, I maybe choose Tosin because he\u2019s very tall and loud, so he can make good saves,\u201d he joked when asked which outfield player could do a turn in goal.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Soccer Adarabioyo: Nigeria or England?<\/h2>\n

Despite his brilliance for Chelsea, Adarabioyo\u2019s international future remains a subject of debate. Born in London to Nigerian<\/a> parents, he has represented England extensively at youth level but never made the step up to the senior side.<\/p>\n

\"Soccer
Photo by IMAGO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Chelsea defender remains eligible to switch allegiance to Nigeria and has previously hinted at the possibility<\/a> of wearing the Super Eagles shirt.<\/p>\n

In 2020, he revealed he was open to featuring at the World Cup with either England or Nigeria. He visited Nigeria recently<\/a> and has admitted he is close to making a decision on his international future.<\/p>\n

For now, Nigeria boss Eric Chelle continues to rely on William Troost-Ekong, Calvin Bassey, Semi Ajayi and Chidozie Awaziem at centre-back. But Adarabioyo\u2019s form in Chelsea blue keeps the door wide open for a call-up.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\"Soccer\t\t<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\tImhonlamhen Eronmhonsele\t\t\t\t<\/a>
\n\t\t\t<\/h3>\n

\n\t\t\t\tImhonlamhen Eronmhonsele turns into a ball of passion when writing about Nigerian football and its talents, whether rising stars or established legends, locally and abroad.<\/p>\n

From the deepest corners of the Middle East, to the green fields of the Americas, to the celebrated grounds in Europe, and the rich soils of Africa, Imhons is more than glad, usually with a glass of a tasty drink nearby, to capture the essence of the game, by connecting the dots between culture, identity, and football.\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>Imhonlamhen Eronmhonsele<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Soccer Photo by IMAGO Marc Cucurella has lifted the lid on what makes Tosin Adarabioyo such a unique presence at Chelsea, Soccernet.ng reports. Spain international Cucurella has describing the Nigerian-eligible defender as one of the loudest and most influential figures in the Chelsea dressing room. Adarabioyo, 27, joined Chelsea on a free transfer from Fulham […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":870258,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37249,2005,22492],"tags":[18713,8553],"class_list":{"0":"post-870257","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-in","8":"category-soccer","9":"category-training","10":"tag-in","11":"tag-training"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870257","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=870257"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870257\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/870258"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=870257"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=870257"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=870257"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}