The Super Eagles of Nigeria will face Russia’s national team in an international friendly on Tuesday, but Russia will be without their first-choice goalkeeper, Matvey Safonov.
Nigeria are looking to end the international break on a positive note after a mixed start to their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign.
The Super Eagles beat Madagascar in their opening game but suffered a heavy 3-0 defeat to Guinea-Bissau in their second match.
Coach Éric Chelle now has the Russia friendly as his final chance to assess his players during the break.
However, Nigeria have arrived in Russia with a young and inexperienced squad.
Only 18 players had reported to camp in Nizhny Novgorod by Sunday evening, with 10 of them yet to make their senior international debuts.
Russia will also be missing one of their biggest names.
Safonov left the Russian camp on Saturday and returned to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
The goalkeeper played in Russia’s 1-0 win over Iran on September 29 but did not feature in their 6-0 victory over Namibia.
There has been no report of an injury, with Safonov understood to have returned to PSG to rest ahead of a busy club schedule.
He is currently competing with Lucas Chevalier for the starting goalkeeper position at PSG.
Without Safonov, Aleksandr Maksimenko, Anton Mitryushkin or Stanislav Agkatsev could start against the Super Eagles.
Russia will still enter the game as favourites, especially with the match taking place at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.
For Chelle, however, the match is another opportunity to test new players and discover more options for the Super Eagles.
A win against Russia would be a major boost for Nigeria, while a good performance would give Chelle valuable information ahead of future assignments.
