Eric Chelle will be without seven players when Nigeria face Russia in Tuesday’s international friendly in Nizhny Novgorod, with injuries, club restrictions and a residence permit problem forcing late changes to his squad.
Captain Wilfred Ndidi, Raphael Onyedika, Moses Usor, Victory Akpe, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola and Suleiman Mubarak have all been ruled out of the encounter at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.
The withdrawals have significantly altered Chelle’s plans for a game the Nigeria coach intended to use to assess new players and rebuild confidence after last month’s 3-0 defeat to Guinea-Bissau in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The Nigeria Football Federation confirmed the various reasons for the withdrawals in a statement issued by its Communications Department.
Ndidi’s absence is the biggest blow to Chelle’s plans. the Super Eagles captain sustained a knock during the defeat to Guinea-Bissau and has subsequently been ruled out of the Russia fixture, denying him the chance to lead the side in Nizhny Novgorod.
Basel defender Victory Akpe has also withdrawn after picking up an injury. Chelle moved quickly to reinforce the squad, calling up Tromsø defender Vince Osuji and Reims midfielder John Otomewo as replacements for Akpe and Ndidi respectively.
For Osuji, the call-up presents an opportunity to make his senior international debut.
The 20-year-old defender, who moved to Tromsø from Club Brugge earlier this year, is among a number of younger players now being given a chance to impress the coach.
Clubs block four players against Russia
Four other players have been prevented from travelling because of decisions by their clubs.
Raphael Onyedika was unable to join the squad after Eintracht Frankfurt refused to release the midfielder for the friendly.
Bright Osayi-Samuel was also retained by Birmingham City, while UAE club Al-Wasl blocked Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola from travelling to Russia.
Moses Usor, who scored the winning goal in Nigeria’s 2-1 victory over Madagascar in Uyo during the opening AFCON qualifier, was handed a late call-up but was not released by LASK.
The Austrian club opted to keep the forward in Linz ahead of its upcoming domestic commitments.
The absence of Usor is particularly notable given his recent impact for Nigeria, while Onyedika and Osayi-Samuel would have offered Chelle additional experience and tactical options.
Residence permit ends Mubarak’s debut hopes
Suleiman Mubarak is the seventh player to withdraw, but for a different reason.
The Slavia Prague attacking midfielder was unable to secure the residence permit required to travel to Russia and will therefore miss what could have been his first appearance for the Super Eagles.
His absence further reduces the number of new faces Chelle can assess against Russia.
The seven withdrawals leave Nigeria with an 18-man squad for the friendly, according to the NFF update, forcing the coach to work with a considerably different group from the one originally selected.
Chelle turns disruption into opportunity
Rather than dwelling on the absences, Chelle has framed the situation as an opportunity for the younger players remaining in camp.
“The context, we cannot bring the club, they are not… they don’t want to let the player come here, so we have to manage the situation,” Chelle said at his pre-match press conference.
“This is why we bring some young players.”
The Nigeria coach said his primary expectation is to see those players demonstrate what they can do against a strong Russian team.
“We lost our last game, but my expectation for this game is to give them an opportunity to show what they can do against a big team,” he added.
“They are very motivated, so we play every time because we want to win. We try to give the best for this jersey.”
readmore: Pre-Match: ‘We come here to win’ – Chelle challenges Nigeria youngsters against Russia
Russia represent a significant examination for Chelle’s reshaped side. Valery Karpin’s team have won their last four matches, scoring 14 goals without conceding against Iran, Namibia, Burkina Faso and Trinidad and Tobago.
But Chelle believes the game can provide precisely the kind of test his younger players need.
Chelle demands a response after Bissau
The Russia friendly comes after Nigeria’s disappointing collapse in Bissau, where Guinea-Bissau recorded a 3-0 victory to leave the Super Eagles under pressure in their AFCON qualifying group.
Chelle identified a lack of intensity as one of the major reasons for that defeat and expects a markedly different response against Russia.
“Because we lost the game, the first factor was because of the intensity of our team. It was not good,” he said.
“Tomorrow is not the same game. We have a good team. They put a lot of intensity when they don’t have the ball.
“We have a lot of aggressiveness in our team, so I can predict that tomorrow we might have a lot of intensity and aggressiveness.”
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Nigeria and Russia drew 1-1 in their only previous senior international meeting in Moscow in June 2025, when Tolu Arokodare scored Nigeria’s equaliser after Semi Ajayi’s own goal had given the hosts the lead.
The Super Eagles will now attempt to claim their first victory over Russia with a squad that looks markedly different from the one Chelle initially planned to take to Nizhny Novgorod.
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