Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle has said that Nigerian U-23 players who played in Tuesday’s friendly 3-3 draw against Russia are ready for the senior team.
Among the 16 players who turned out for the Super Eagles at the Sovcombank Arena in Nizhny Novgorod, 10 satisfy the age requirements to compete for Nigeria at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, as they were born on or after January 1, 2005.
These players comprise Samuel James (SJK Seinäjoki), Benjamin Fredrick (Brentford), Aderemi Adeoye (Ikorodu City), Wilfred Igor (Kristiansund BK), Stephen Michael (Vendsyssel FF), Chibby Nwoko (Fulham), Vince Osuji (Tromso), Peter Edokpolor (Benfica), Abdullahi Umar (Hradec Kralove), and Umar Abubakar (Famalicão).
Chelle granted competitive debuts to nine emerging talents in response to the unavailability and withdrawal of numerous established players.
The Franco-Malian tactician articulated that the exhibition match constituted part of Nigeria’s strategic preparation for forthcoming tournaments, while acknowledging that assembling his optimal roster had encountered obstacles.
“We are endeavoring to prepare for the African Cup of Nations and the Olympic Games,” Eric Chelle stated during the post-match media briefing.
“We encountered difficulties in assembling all desired players for the squad. In this instance, we fielded players from the U-23 contingent, and they demonstrated their readiness for senior-level competition.”
The 19-year-old Edokpolor entered the match as a substitute to narrow the margin in the 78th minute, and Umar Abdullahi subsequently provided the assist for Akor Adams to secure Nigeria’s equalizing goal in stoppage time.