Super Eagles head coach Éric Chelle says his players are highly motivated to return to winning ways when Nigeria face Russia in an international friendly at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium on Tuesday.
The Super Eagles will be aiming to bounce back from their disappointing 3-0 defeat to Guinea-Bissau in their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying fixture last Tuesday.
Nigeria will field a largely second-string squad against Russia, with several regular players unavailable for the encounter.
Captain Wilfred Ndidi and Basel defender Victory Akpe are ruled out through injury, while Bright Osayi-Samuel, Raphael Onyedika and Ridwan Abdulrasaq Popoola were not released by their respective clubs for the trip.
Moses Usor, who scored on his Super Eagles debut against Madagascar in Uyo on September 25, was initially left out of the squad before being called up for the Russia friendly. However, his Austrian club, LASK, subsequently instructed him not to travel.
Slavia Prague midfielder Suleiman Mubarak also missed the trip after his residence permit was not secured in time.
Chelle acknowledged the difficulties surrounding player availability but insisted that his team remains determined to put on a strong performance against Russia.
“Some clubs don’t want the players to come, so we have to manage the situation. We lost our last game, and the expectation for this game is to give the new players the opportunity to show what they can do,” Chelle told reporters on Monday.
“We are motivated. The players want to win, and they want to give their best for the jersey and the country.”
The Franco-Malian coach also reflected on the defeat to Guinea-Bissau, identifying a lack of intensity as one of the reasons for the loss.
“This is not the same team. We lost the game against Guinea-Bissau because our intensity was not good. It’s going to be a different game,” he said.
Chelle expects Russia to provide a stern test, particularly because of their aggressive approach without the ball.
“The Russian team plays with a lot of intensity too. When they don’t have the ball, they are always aggressive. I want my team to play the same way too,”,he added.
“If we play that way tomorrow, I will be very happy. I want to see a good game and a good performance from the players.”
By Adeboye Amosu
