Russia’s Star Goalkeeper To Miss Super Eagles Clash
The Super Eagles of Nigeria will face Russia in an international friendly on Tuesday without one of their key players.
Nigeria are coming from their first two matches in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
They defeated Madagascar but suffered a disappointing 3-0 loss to Guinea-Bissau.
The team will now turn their attention to Russia, with the friendly set to take place at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.
Coach Éric Chelle is working with a largely inexperienced squad.
As of Sunday evening, only 18 players had arrived at the team’s camp in Nizhny Novgorod, with 10 of them yet to win a senior cap.
Russia will also be without one of their biggest names.
Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Matvey Safonov has left the Russian camp and returned to his club.
Safonov played in Russia’s 1-0 win over Iran on September 29 but was not involved in their 6-0 victory over Namibia on Saturday.
No injury has been reported, with the goalkeeper understood to have returned to Paris to rest ahead of a busy club schedule.
Safonov is also fighting for the starting goalkeeper position at PSG, where he faces competition from French goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier.
In his absence, Aleksandr Maksimenko, Anton Mitryushkin or Stanislav Agkatsev could start against Nigeria.
Russia remain favourites because of their home advantage and the experience in their squad.
However, Tuesday’s game gives Chelle a chance to test new players and assess options for the Super Eagles and the Olympic team.
A victory over Russia would also give Chelle and his young squad a major boost.
