Super Eagles Head Coach Éric Chelle says several young players used the 3-3 draw with Russia to show they can join the senior squad’s core, as he prepares to pick his group for November.
“As I mentioned before the match, we had some difficulties with the arrival of some players: their clubs didn’t want to release them. That’s why many players from the U-23 team came to Russia,” Chelle said via the Russian Football Union.
“Today, several of them demonstrated their potential to become part of the national team’s main squad in the future. Now I’ll have about ten days to decide who we’ll continue working with in November. Our main priorities are the African Cup of Nations and Olympic qualification.”
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Match analysis
Nigeria fielded a heavily rotated lineup in Nizhny Novgorod on Tuesday. Only six starters had played for the senior team before: Moses Simon, Kelechi Iheanacho, Benjamin Fredricks, Emmanuel Fernandez, Abdullahi Bewene and Aderemi Adeoye. Nine players made their debuts across the night.
Iheanacho struck first in the 11th minute. He collected Bewene’s pass on the edge of the box and drilled a left-footed shot into the top corner for his 15th international goal.
Defensive lapses then let Russia back in. The hosts levelled and beat debutant goalkeeper Samuel James, then went 2-1 up at the break after a mix-up on the stroke of halftime. Russia stretched the lead to 3-1 nine minutes after the restart.
Chelle responded with fresh legs, and the changes lifted the tempo. Substitute Umar Abdullahi nearly pulled one back in the 73rd minute after he intercepted high up the pitch following Isaac James’s work.
Nineteen-year-old debutant Peter Edokpolor then made his mark. He charged through the Russian defence in the 78th minute and fired past the goalkeeper to make it 3-2.
Chelle sent on Vince Osuji for Chibuzo Nwoko in the 83rd minute to steady the midfield while Nigeria kept pushing. The pressure paid off in added time.
Fernandez started a counter with a header from the back, and Abdullahi squared the ball for fellow substitute Akor Adams, who equalised in the 94th minute.
The comeback, the second of the night, gave Chelle plenty to weigh as he begins his selection process for the next window.
