Nigeria’s Super Eagles face Russia with a depleted squad after clubs block players and injuries rule out several key names.
The Nigeria Football Federation says the Super Eagles have been seriously weakened ahead of Tuesday’s international friendly against Russia after several clubs refused to release players for the fixture.
The NFF Communications Department said the situation was compounded by injuries to key players, including captain Wilfred Ndidi, who picked up a knock during Nigeria’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Guinea-Bissau last week.
Midfielder Raphael Onyedika has also been ruled out after his German club, Eintracht Frankfurt, stopped him from travelling to Russia.
Defender Bright Osayi-Samuel and UAE-based midfielder Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola were also stopped by their clubs from joining the squad.
Switzerland-based defender Victory Akpe will miss the match because of injury.
Austria-based forward Moses Usor, who scored on his Nigeria debut against Madagascar in Uyo on 25 September, was also unavailable after his club, LASK FC, refused to release him.
The NFF said Usor was not initially listed for the trip but was later requested by head coach Éric Chelle.
“However, when eventually he was requested by Head Coach Éric Chelle, LASK FC told him he should not fly to Russia,” the federation said.
Suleiman Mubarak, who was invited from Czech club Slavia Prague, also failed to travel because his residence permit had not been secured.
The NFF said the combination of club restrictions and injuries had left Nigeria with a weakened squad for the meeting with Russia.
“The situation has weakened the Nigeria squad for the encounter against ‘The Boys’,” the federation said.
Nigeria and Russia played out a 1-1 draw at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium 16 months ago.
The NFF also said late invitee Ibraheem Ajasa of Russian club FC Rostov was expected to join the team’s camp in Nizhny Novgorod on Sunday evening.
A total of 18 Super Eagles players were listed in Russia for the friendly.
The squad includes goalkeepers Michael Atata, Samuel James and Stanley Nwabali; defenders Kenneth Igboke, Isaac James, Benjamin Fredricks, Emmanuel Fernandez and Abdullahi Bewene.
Midfield options are Chibuzo Nwoke, Stephen Michael, Igor Wilfred and Aderemi Adeoye.
The forwards are Kelechi Iheanacho, Moses Simon, Akor Adams, Peter Edokpolor, Abubakar Umar and Abdullahi Umar.
The friendly against Russia gives Chelle another opportunity to assess his squad ahead of Nigeria’s future competitive fixtures, but the number of unavailable players has reduced his options for the encounter.