Ndidi Leads as 18-Man Super Eagles Squad Begins Preparations for Poland Friendly
Okoye, Semi Ajayi, Onuachu, Onyedika, Onyeka Also in Camp
Captain Wilfred Ndidi led the Super Eagles in their first training session on Monday evening as Nigeria began preparations for Wednesday’s international friendly against Poland at the 58,000-capacity Stadion PGE Narodowy.
The session, held under light rain at the Stadion Polinii Warsawa, featured 16 players including goalkeepers Maduka Okoye, Francis Uzoho, and Arthur Okonkwo; defenders Bruno Onyemaechi, Zaidu Sanusi, Emmanuel Fernandez, and Igoh Ogbu; midfielders Frank Onyeka, Raphael Onyedika, and Tochukwu Nnadi; and forwards Moses Simon, Paul Onuachu, Jerome Akor Adams, Terem Moffi, and Rafiu Durosinmi.
Later arrivals included Semi Ajayi, fresh from Hull City’s promotion to the Premier League, and newcomer Abdullahi Bewene, who were warmly welcomed by teammates but did not participate in the session.
Head coach Eric Chelle, who recently guided Nigeria to retain the Unity Cup in London, expressed confidence ahead of the clash: ‘There is a culture of winning that we are trying to build in this team, and that mentality is important. We have 18 players in camp now and we will work with that. Everybody must work hard and we will go into the match with the determination to win.’
This fixture marks only the second senior-level meeting between Nigeria and Poland. Their first encounter came in March 2018, when Victor Moses scored the winner in a 1-0 victory for the Super Eagles in Wroclaw.
Both nations narrowly missed qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Poland fell 2-3 to Sweden in the European playoff final, while Nigeria lost to DR Congo on penalties after defeating Gabon in the African playoff semifinal.
The Super Eagles will hold their official training session at the match venue on Tuesday.
