Super Eagles captain Wilfred Ndidi will miss Nigeria’s international friendly against Russia after suffering a minor injury during the team’s recent 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
The Nigeria Football Federation confirmed that the Besiktas midfielder picked up a knock during last week’s 3-0 defeat to Guinea-Bissau at the September 24 Stadium in Bissau.
Ndidi had been expected to lead the Super Eagles against Russia on Tuesday, October 6, but the injury has forced him out of the fixture. He has since returned to Türkiye to continue his recovery with his club.
The 29-year-old midfielder featured in both of Nigeria’s AFCON 2027 qualifying matches during the September international window.
He played as Nigeria defeated Madagascar 2-1 in Uyo before also featuring in the disappointing 3-0 loss to Guinea-Bissau.
With the Russia friendly coming only days after the qualifiers, the knock sustained in Bissau has now ruled the Super Eagles captain out of another international appearance.
Ndidi’s absence is a blow to Eric Chelle, particularly because the friendly was expected to provide the coach with another opportunity to assess his squad ahead of future competitive fixtures.
Ndidi is not the only player who will miss the Russia fixture, The NFF confirmed that Raphael Onyedika was stopped from travelling by his German club, Eintracht Frankfurt, while Bright Osayi-Samuel and Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola were also prevented from joining the squad by their respective clubs.
Switzerland-based defender Victory Akpe was ruled out because of injury.
Moses Usor, who scored on his Super Eagles debut against Madagascar, was also unavailable after his Austrian club LASK declined to release him for the trip.
Slavia Prague midfielder Suleiman Mubarak will also miss the match because his residence permit was not secured in time for the journey.
The withdrawals have reduced Nigeria’s originally planned 24-man squad to just 18 players in Russia, with several players unavailable, Chelle has had to make late adjustments to his squad.
John Otomewo was called up as a replacement for Ndidi, while another late addition was made following the withdrawal of Akpe Victory.
The reduced squad means several less experienced players could receive important minutes against Russia.
Among the players available are goalkeepers Stanley Nwabali, Michael Atata and Samuel James, while the defence includes Kenneth Igboke, Isaac James, Benjamin Fredricks, Emmanuel Fernandez and Abdullahi Bewene.
The midfield options include Chibuzo Nwoko, Stephen Michael, Igor Wilfred and Aderemi Adeoye.
Up front, Kelechi Iheanacho, Moses Simon, Akor Adams, Peter Edokpolor, Abubakar Umar and Abdullahi Umar remain available.
Nigeria will face Russia at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium on Tuesday, October 6.
The friendly will be Nigeria’s second meeting with Russia in 16 months. The two countries played a 1-1 draw at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium in June 2025, with Tolu Arokodare scoring Nigeria’s equaliser after an own goal had put the hosts ahead.
The fixture comes at an important moment for Chelle following Nigeria’s disappointing defeat to Guinea-Bissau in the AFCON qualifiers.
Although the Russia game is not a competitive fixture, it gives the coach a chance to assess players who could become important options for the Super Eagles in future.
For Ndidi, however, the immediate priority is recovery and returning to club football.
The midfielder is expected to focus on his preparations with Besiktas ahead of their Turkish Super League fixture against Kocaelispor on October 11.
His absence will leave Nigeria without one of its most experienced midfielders and its captain for the Russia encounter, adding another challenge to a Super Eagles side already affected by a series of late withdrawals.
