In Aghahowa and Aiyegbeni, he would have had two players returning to the national team after initially feeling slighted by the team selections and soccer administrators.With 13 goals in 21 internationals, Aghahowa is easily Nigeria's most potent striker in the last four years and seems a sure bet for a starting shirt anyday even if he takes his stock to a league as lowly as Malta. Nigerians are still yearning to be treated to those somersaults they have seen him do against Sweden at Korea/Japan 2002.

If Aghahowa has been successful in national colours, can the same be said of Aiyegbeni? But even if Aiyegbeni has been less convincing for the Eagles, can Chukwu ignore a player that scored 19 goals in his debut Premieship season, including four on late match day? Given the fact that it took NFA Secretary-General Taiwo Ogunjobi going on his twos before Aiyegbeni, who was decamped at Tunsia 2004, agreed to play for Nigeria again could make him a sacred cow of some sorts. The player would feel slighted if not featured against Algeria.Would Chukwu have stuck to his guns and start Aiyegbeni from the bench while living out the dream Aghahowa/Martins pairing upfront? If yes, when during the cause of the match could he have introduced The Yak without the latter feeling "insulted"?

Not a few Nigerians pray to see the day Aghahowa's precision and Martins' blistering pace could be deployed to optimum effect in the Super Eagles, the pairing is one many believe could wreck any opposition in the world. What would it look like having two strikers who would celebrate a particular goal with multiple back flips simultaneously? The attraction in the pairing is one Chukwu would have found difficult to jettison.In order to please the aggrieved duo would he have started with Aiyegbeni and Aghahowa while keeping Martins on the bench? Beyond the fact that Martins has been an instant hit in the national team, he had also proved hard-to-get and deserves as much respect as, if not more than, the other two.Chukwu and co will not toy with the idea of having the prodigy feel dissatisfied with the national team. After Aghahowa's first two laps, he had notched two goals, Martins has as many goals in as many matches. Like the former, the latter had scored on his international debut. So Martins' pedigree is equally up there.

It may no longer be news that Aghahowa has been ruled out of the match, no thanks to injury. This has reduced the attacking options available to Chukwu to five.All the above calculations had consciously left out one of the most improved players in the national team, Utaka. Utaka's multi-purpose role means he could play from a deeper midfield role behind the two strikers so that seems sorted out.If Utaka had not settled down to a role once ascribed to Samson Siasia, leaving the former out of the starting 11 would have been a very difficult choice for Chukwu to make. But having the Lens player file out in the role behind the strikers is one of the national team's deadliest weapons.

With Aghahowa out, Chukwu would most likely start with the pair of Martins and Aiyegbeni but would that be on current form? While pleading to be left out of the Angola game, Aiyegbeni had confessed that he had not been training since Portsmouth's 5-1 defeat of Middlesbrough on Premiership', last match day. Has he knocked himself into shape early enough to start the Algeria game? Moreover, the Aiyegbeni/Martin pairing had not been tried out earlier, would it work out? With Aiyegbeni's bulldozer presence weighing down the opposition and Martin ever ready to take on a sea of legs, it should be busy times in the Algeria box.

What with Austin Okocha now available to provide the harmony from the midfield? If there are doubts over the workability of having Aiyegbeni join Martins in the attack, the same might not be said of a Martins/Ogbeche pairing, which had been the most celebrated in recent times. Between them, Martin and Ogbeche had scored five of the goals the team had scored in the two matches they were paired. It will therefore be axiomatic to state that the Ogbeche/Martin pairing is one that is gradually gaining grounds. Martins had not appeared comfortable with other attacking partners, outside Ogbeche, in the national team. He never jelled with Enoch Shorunmu when the latter was introduced against Ireland just as the introduction of Dosunmu against Rwanda left Martinas like an orphan upfront.

Would Chukwu discard the rhythm and start Ogbeche from the bench? Ogbeche has scored three goals in his last three games for the national team and has shown good form since joining Bastia on loan from PSG last season. On current form, is his place actually on the bench? But who would leave National Cup revelation Osaze Odemwengie in the lower rung in the Pekking order? After scoring three goals in his debut Nations Cup finals, Odemwengie should be taken seriously. The fair-skinned striker, who could also file out in an attacking midfield position, had not featured in the team's earlier post Nations Cup games, no thanks to injury but not a few Nigerians anticipate his return with nostalgia. He would have done himself a world of good if he had been available for selection on the days Ogbeche and Martins ran the show. Now he would be battling to step up to the Nations Cup hype against two equally young players who are not less popular.

Odemwengie knows the tough task ahead of him. Little wonder he was one of the earliest players to hit camp. He really wants to start making good impression on the technical crew early enough. Who knows, the others might just arrive too late? This former Insurance lad appears the most likely to start from the bench but like Utaka, he also has the advantage of adapting to a role in the middle of the pack. He could fancy a place as a flank midfielder but unfortunately, Chukwu has not been well disposed to having him file out in this role. "Osaze is not strong enough to lay in the midfield formations of the modern game. Sometimes, you really need players who could fight all the way. You need enforces", Chukwu once told Sports Champion. So while Utaka could find succour beside Okocha in the midfield, the same might not be said of Odenwengie.

What these entail is that Chukwu could accommodate three of these five strikers in the starting 11 while leaving two on the bench. It also means that he would have some good company in the cause of the game, quality strikers he could introduce to refresh the team and turn on the heat against the Algerians.

- Original write-up as posted by 'Machavelli' is available on www.kickoffnigeria.com