2027 AFCON Qualifiers: Osimhen Not Available

Victor Osimhen will not be available for Nigeria’s opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau after his recovery from a muscle strain proved slower than expected.

Osimhen was included in Nigeria’s squad for the qualifiers after Galatasaray and the Super Eagles technical crew were hopeful that the striker would recover in time to feature in the Turkish Super Lig fixture against Trabzonspor and subsequently be ready for the international window.

However, his absence from Galatasaray’s match against Trabzonspor on Saturday has confirmed that Osimhen is still recovering from the injury.

The development also corroborates Galatasaray’s correspondence to Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle that the Nigerian striker would not be ready in time for Nigeria’s upcoming AFCON qualifiers.

Osimhen suffered the injury on September 4 when he scored Galatasaray’s opening goal in their 3-2 victory over Istanbul Basaksehir before being forced off in the 33rd minute.

Medical examinations revealed a moderate-to-severe strain with bleeding in the right adductor muscle group.

The 27-year-old subsequently missed Galatasaray’s Champions League opener against Sporting CP and their 1-0 league victory over Kocaelispor before also sitting out Saturday’s meeting with Trabzonspor.

Nigeria will host Madagascar in Uyo on September 25 before travelling to Guinea-Bissau four days later.

With Osimhen now effectively ruled out, Chelle will have to rely on his other attacking options, including Tolu Arokodare, Akor Adams and George Ilenikhena, for the opening qualifiers.