The Super Eagles will face Russia without several key players after the Nigeria Football Federation confirmed that seven members of the squad were unavailable for the international friendly.
Among those missing are captain Wilfred Ndidi and Basel defender Victory Akpe, who both picked up injuries.
Ndidi sustained a knock during Nigeria’s recent 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Guinea-Bissau, while Akpe was also ruled out of the trip because of injury.
Raphael Onyedika, Bright Osayi-Samuel and Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola are also absent after their clubs prevented them from travelling.
“Midfielder Raphael Onyedika was stopped from travelling to Russia by his German club, Eintracht Frankfurt. Defender Bright Osayi-Samuel and UAE-based midfielder Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola were stopped by their clubs,” the NFF said.
Moses Usor will equally miss the game after LASK refused to release him. The forward was initially left out of the travelling squad before coach Éric Chelle later asked for him to join the team.
Usor had made his Super Eagles debut against Madagascar in September, scoring during Nigeria’s 2-1 victory in Uyo.
Another player affected is Slavia Prague attacker Suleiman Mubarak, whose planned debut has been delayed because he could not secure the necessary residence permit.
“Suleiman Mubarak, invited from Slavia Prague in Czechia, could not travel to Russia because his residence permit has not been secured,” the NFF said.
The number of available players has dropped significantly ahead of the match, leaving Chelle to work with a reduced squad following Nigeria’s disappointing 3-0 loss to Guinea-Bissau.
Eighteen players took part in Sunday’s training before Rostov midfielder Ibrahim Ajasa was called up as a late replacement, taking the number in camp to 19.
The Super Eagles completed their final preparation at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium on Monday evening.
Their opponents, Russia, arrive in strong form after beating Iran 2-0 and recording a convincing 6-0 win over Namibia in their most recent outing.
Nigeria will be aiming to improve on the result from their last meeting with Russia in June 2025, when the two countries played out a 1-1 draw in Moscow.
