England FA fail to persuade Iwobi to snub Nigeria call-up

England's last-ditch attempt to convince Arsenal starlet Alex Iwobi to turn his back on Nigeria will not succeed, a source close to the player's family has told ESPN FC.

 Reports in England had claimed that the FA made an effort to convince the 19-year-old not to board a flight to Nigeria, where he could cement his international future if he features for the Super Eagles in their African Nations Cup (ANC) qualifier against Egypt on Friday.

The source told ESPN FC that a request was made via email to let Iwobi know it was not too late for him to change his mind and pick England.

However the midfielder, who scored for the Gunners on his Premier League debut in the 2-0 win over Everton this weekend, has made up his mind to represent the Super Eagles.

Iwobi arrived in Abuja on Sunday and joined his teammates in preparation for the make or mar encounter.

"Alex is committed to Nigeria," the source told ESPN FC. "It's taken over nine months of hard work to complete the paperwork on his switch and he will not throw all that away now."

Iwobi -- who played for England at under-16, U17 and U18 levels -- has featured in two friendly games for Nigeria, and as an unused substitute in the competitive fixture against Swaziland, and told the FA of his intentions before boarding the flight to Abuja.

He is now expected to make his international debut for Nigeria in the ANC double header which will see the side travel to Egypt for the second leg on Tuesday.