TheCable

Super Eagles defender, Efe Ambrose, hopes Nigeria’s World Cup campaign will lead to the return of nearly 276 schoolgirls who were kidnapped by terrorists.

The 25-year-old, who joined Celtic from Israeli side Ashdod in 2012, believes the African nation’s passion for football can help bring peace and stability to his homeland.

The world was shocked when Boko Haram abducted the girls from their boarding school in the northern town of Chibok six weeks ago.

A campaign to release them, wired around the hash tag – #BringBackOurGirls – has developed into a global campaign on social media.

Ambrose, a substitute in Nigeria’s 2-2 midweek friendly draw against Scotland in London, is from the northern city of Kaduna, and feels an affinity with the abducted girls.

“The area where the girls were taken from is not too far from where I grew up,” he told Daily Record.

“Nigeria will come to a halt when the World Cup is on. When we’re playing, nobody will forget about the girls or what is happening elsewhere in Nigeria, but we can use it to bring peace and calm to the country.”

The Super Eagles kick-off their World Cup campaign against Iran on Monday June 16, 2014, at Arena da Baixada, Curitiba.