Bruno Labbadia inherits 40-man Super Eagles provisional squad for 2025 AFCON qualifiers
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will hand over a 40-man provisional squad for the upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers to newly appointed Super Eagles coach, Bruno Labbadia.
This list, which was submitted to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) weeks ago to meet the regulatory deadline, includes invitation letters that have already been sent to the players’ respective clubs, as reported by BSN.
Labbadia, who was officially announced as the new head coach of the Super Eagles on Tuesday morning, will take over immediately from Austin Eguavoen, the NFF’s Technical Director. Eguavoen had been on standby to lead the team and announce the final squad for the qualifiers.
The 58-year-old German tactician, formerly in charge of VfB Stuttgart, now faces the crucial task of narrowing down the provisional list to a final 23-man squad for the qualifiers. The Super Eagles are set to face the Benin Republic in Uyo on Saturday, 7th September, and Rwanda on Tuesday, 10th September, in Kigali.
Born in Darmstadt, Germany, on 8th February 1966, Labbadia brings a wealth of experience to the role, having played for prestigious clubs such as Bayern Munich and Hamburger SV. He also has an extensive coaching resume, having managed teams like Hertha Berlin, VfL Wolfsburg, and Bayer Leverkusen, and holds a UEFA Pro License.
Bruno Labbadia is the sixth German to take charge of the Super Eagles, following in the footsteps of his compatriots as he aims to guide Nigeria to success in the upcoming qualifiers and beyond.
