Chijioke Gabriel
Several withdrawals and injuries to some players have combined to alter the list of players who will appear for Nigeria in Friday’s international friendly match against Russia in Moscow, the Nigeria Football Federation has said.
Six players including Ola Aina, Wilfred Ndidi, Samuel Chukwueze, Kelechi Iheanacho, Sadiq Umar and Nathan Tella have all been excused from the squad as the team landed in Moscow on Monday.
According to the NFF, Aina excused himself from the friendly, and Coach Chelle has had to draft in the Unity Cup duo of Sodiq Ismaila and Benjamin Fredericks.
To complete the defence line, captain William Ekong is in Moscow alongside Bright Osayi-Samuel, joining the Unity Cup trio of Bruno Onyemaechi, Semi Ajayi and Igoh Ogbu.
In the midfield, an injury to Wilfred Ndidi has handed Enugu Rangers’ ace Saviour Isaac the opportunity to shine. Isaac is a key member of the Eagles B, which will participate in the African Nations Championship finals in August. He will join Frank Onyeka, Raphael Onyedika, Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, Christantus Uche and Papa Daniel Mustapha to fight for shirts in the middle of the pack.
Also, Unity Cup ace Chukwueze, and Iheanacho, have excused themselves to attend to family matters, while Spain-based Umar has suffered an injury. Tella’s United Kingdom passport is undergoing a renewal process, so he is unable to travel.
This situation has left Chelle with only Victor Boniface, Simon Moses and Tolu Arokodare in the attack, and he has had to call up Russia-based former junior international Olakunle Olusegun, who plays for Krasnodar FC.
The goalkeeping sector is unaffected as the first choice Stanley Nwabali was not listed for the trip in the first place, as a result of the upcoming burial rites for his late parents.
Italy-based Maduka Okoye and Tanzania-based Amas Obasogie will still fight for the goaltender’s starting shirt.
The team, which arrived in Moscow on Monday, will begin training sessions on Tuesday (today).
The match will take place at the 78,000-capacity Luzhniki Stadium, which is the largest football stadium in Russia and the ninth-largest in the whole of Europe.
