International friendly: Super Eagles to face Russia with squad depletion

The Super Eagles of Nigeria are scheduled to play Russia in an international friendly on Tuesday, October 6, 2026.

The highly anticipated clash will kick off at 5:00 PM Nigerian time (7:00 PM local time) at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium in Russia.

This match serves as a rematch of their June 2025 friendly in Moscow, which ended in a 1-1 draw after a Tolu Arokodare equalizer.

Head coach Eric Chelle has had to make some decisions due to injuries and club restrictions on players.

 Super Eagles prepare for Russia

Nigeria will face Russia with a depleted squad after a combination of club restrictions and injuries ruled out several key players.

The Super Eagles had their first training session in Nizhny Novgorod on Saturday.
The group of 17 players that trained on Saturday included 101-cap Moses Simon, goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, defenders Benjamin Fredricks and Emmanuel Fernandez, and forwards Kelechi Iheanacho and Akor Adams.

The team had two more training sessions on Sunday and Monday towards the encounter on Tuesday evening.

Captain Wilfred Ndidi is unavailable after sustaining a minor knock during Nigeria’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying defeat by Guinea-Bissau last week.

FC Basel defender Victory Akpe also pulled out with an injury.

Moses Simon is expected to lead the team out against Russia in Ndidi’s absence.

Club restrictions on Super Eagles players

Some clubs’ refusal to release their players, coupled with injuries to notable names, has further weakened Nigeria’s Super Eagles squad ahead of Tuesday’s international friendly against Russia’s senior men national team.

Players such as Eintracht Frankfurt’s Raphael Onyedika, Birmingham City’s Bright Osayi-Samuel, and UAE-based midfielder Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola have been restricted from playing by their respective clubs.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) revealed that LASK’s Moses Usor was also restricted from playing by his club.
Usor, who scored on his debut for Nigeria against Madagascar in Uyo on 25th September, had not been initially listed in the squad for the friendly game.

However, he was requested by Head Coach Éric Chelle to join the team, but LASK told him not to fly to Russia.

Visa permit delays also ruled out Mubarak Suleiman, who plays for Slavia Prague.

Russia and Nigeria played to a 1-1 draw at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium on 6th June, 2025.

The Russians scored first through an own goal by defender Semi Ajayi, before Tolu Arokodare levelled it for the Super Eagles.

Nigeria’s recent match was a 3-0 loss to Guinea-Bissau in the 2027 AFCON qualifying match.

Russia, in contrast, have been in sharp form under Valery Karpin as they recorded a 2-0 win over Iran before thrashing Namibia 6-0 in their most recent outing.

They will be looking to carry that momentum into the Nigeria match.

Russia will rely heavily on creative players like Danil Prutsev and forward Konstantin Tyukavin, though they are missing top stars Matvey Safonov and Aleksandr Golovin.

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