Eric Chelle has turned to Coventry City striker Taiwo Awoniyi after Victor Osimhen was ruled out of Nigeria’s opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, ending hopes that the Galatasaray forward would recover in time to face Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau, Footynaija.com reports.
Osimhen had initially been included in Chelle’s 24-man squad despite missing Galatasaray’s previous fixtures with a right adductor injury, with Nigeria’s technical crew hopeful that he could return before the international window.
That hope was tied partly to Saturday’s meeting with Trabzonspor, which was expected to provide an important indication of whether the striker was ready to return. Osimhen was again absent as Galatasaray suffered a 4-0 defeat, effectively ending the possibility of him joining the Super Eagles this month.
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The NFF subsequently confirmed that his recovery from the muscle strain had taken longer than expected. Osimhen has not played since scoring against Istanbul Basaksehir on September 4 before leaving the game in the 33rd minute.
Chelle calls up Awoniyi
With Osimhen now unavailable, Chelle has moved to fill the gap by bringing Awoniyi into the squad.
The Super Eagles confirmed on Sunday that the Coventry City striker replaces Osimhen for the qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau.
It is a return to the national team for Awoniyi, who has recently begun another chapter in the Premier League after joining Coventry from Nottingham Forest this summer.
Awoniyi’s return gives Chelle another experienced option in attack alongside Ademola Lookman, Moses Simon, Akor Adams, Tolu Arokodare, Samuel Chukwueze, George Ilenikhena and Moses Usor.
The striker has also worked with Chelle before and was part of Nigeria’s wider attacking group during the coach’s earlier selections, making this less of an entirely new call than a return to the fold at a time when the Super Eagles have lost their main centre-forward.
Nigeria will host Madagascar in Uyo on September 25 before travelling to Guinea-Bissau four days later.
