AFCON QUALIFIERS: OSIMHEN NOT AVAILABLE
Victor Osimhen’s recovery from a muscle strain has taken longer than expected. He was named in Nigeria’s AFCON qualifier squad after Galatasaray and the Super Eagles technical crew hoped he would be fit for the Süper Lig clash with Trabzonspor and ready for the international window.
His absence from tonight’s match confirms Galatasaray’s message to Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle: the striker is still recovering and will not be available for Nigeria’s fixtures. He will be unavailable for the matches against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau.
Osimhen has been sidelined since September 4 after suffering an injury to his right groin, raising concerns over whether he would be fit enough to feature for Nigeria in the upcoming qualifiers against Madagascar on September 25 and Guinea-Bissau four days later.
The Galatasaray forward had been pencilled in to potentially make his return for the Turkish club against Trabzonspor on September 19.
However, as of Thursday, Osimhen was still training away from the main group. He completed an individual gym session alongside Mario Lemina, with both players considered unlikely to travel for the Trabzonspor fixture.
As a result, Osimhen has not made a competitive appearance since sustaining the injury on September 4, meaning he could arrive at the international camp without any match fitness if he is unable to
Nigeria have other attacking options available for the qualifiers, with Tolu Arokodare, Akor Adams and George Ilenikhena also included among the centre-forward choices.
The Super Eagles will face Madagascar on September 25 before taking on Guinea-Bissau four days later as they continue their campaign in the 2027 AFCON qualifiers.
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