Super Eagles captain Wilfred Ndidi spearheaded the squad’s preparations for Wednesday’s international friendly against Poland after 18 players arrived at the team’s camp in Warsaw.
The encounter at the 58,000-capacity Stadion PGE Narodowy will mark only the second senior-level meeting between Nigeria and Poland.
The last clash between both nations came on March 23, 2018, when the Super Eagles defeated Poland 1-0 in Wroclaw as part of their preparations for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with Victor Moses scoring the decisive goal.
Both teams narrowly missed out on qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Poland reached the Euro playoff final after overcoming Albania but suffered a 3-2 defeat to Sweden, while Nigeria beat Gabon before losing to DR Congo on penalties in the African playoff final.
18 players already in camp
Among the players present at the team’s Warsaw Presidential Hotel on Monday were captain Ndidi, goalkeepers Maduka Okoye, Francis Uzoho and Arthur Okonkwo; defenders Bruno Onyemaechi, Zaidu Sanusi, Emmanuel Fernandez and Igoh Ogbu; midfielders Frank Onyeka, Raphael Onyedika and Tochukwu Nnadi; and forwards Moses Simon, Paul Onuachu, Jerome Akor Adams, Terem Moffi and Rafiu Durosinmi.
Defender Semi Ajayi, whose Hull City side recently secured promotion back to the English Premier League, joined the camp later in the day. Newly invited Abdullahi Bewene also arrived afterwards. Neither player participated in Monday’s training session.
Chelle targets another victory
Head coach Eric Chelle, fresh from guiding the Super Eagles to another Unity Cup triumph in London, expressed confidence ahead of the match.
“There is a culture of winning that we are trying to build in this team, and that mentality is important. You can say that it is difficult to have games at this time because the players have been in holiday mood for about two weeks, but the job must be done.
“We have 18 players in camp now and we will work with that. Everybody must work hard and we will go into the match with the determination to win,” Chelle said.
The Franco-Malian tactician supervised an 80-minute training session under light rain at Stadion Polonii Warszawa. The team’s official training session is scheduled to take place on Tuesday at the match venue, Stadion PGE Narodowy.