March 22, (THEWILL) – The senior men’s national football team’s Abuja camp, was teeming with squad players as of Tuesday, with Samuel Chukwueze and Zaidu Sanusi the most recent arrivals, ahead of the double-header Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup playoffs against Ghana’s Black Stars.
Goalkeeper John Noble, a late substitute for Maduka Okoye, Umar Sadiq, and Leicester City winger Ademola Lookman are still scheduled to join up, while 19-year-old Akinkunmi Amoo arrived late Tuesday night at the team’s The Well Carlton Hotel camp due to flight issues.
The players in camp took part in the team’s first training session inside the mainbowl of the Moshood Abiola Stadium, Abuja, which was overseen by Technical Adviser, Augustine Eguavoen. Those who were involved included:
Goalkeepers Francis Uzoho and Daniel Akpeyi; defenders Oluwasemilogo Ajayi, Kenneth Omeruo, Leon Balogun, William Troost-Ekong, Olaoluwa Aina, Calvin Bassey, Abdullahi Shehu and Zaidu Sanusi.
In the centre of the park, midfielders Frank Onyeka, Joe Aribo, Innocent Bonke (who was drafted in as a late replacement for the injured Leicester City midfield enforcer Wilfred Ndidi) and Oghenekaro Etebo trained with the squad.
The forward options already in camp, who joined the session included team captain Ahmed Musa, Samuel Chukwueze, Moses Simon, Odion Jude Ighalo, Kelechi Iheanacho, Emmanuel Dennis, Victor Osimhen.
The team is billed to hold another session at the Abuja grounds on Wednesday evening ahead of a scheduled flight to Ghana on Thursday morning. They will depart Abuja’s Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on a chartered jet.
As THEWILL reported, the first leg of the playoffs will be contested in Ghana this Friday, March 25 with the second leg taking place four days later on March 29.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
