Super Eagles AFCON squad: 3 new invitees and 3 shock returnees in Chelle’s team

Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle unveiled his 24-man squad for Nigeria’s opening AFCON 2027 qualifiers against Madagascar on 25 September in Uyo and Guinea-Bissau on 29 September, Afrik-Foot reports.

The headline name was Victor Osimhen, whose inclusion despite the groin injury sustained in Galatasaray’s Basaksehir win surprised Nigerian football fans.

Cyriel Dessers, Kelechi Iheanacho and Abdullahi Bewene, all discussed as potential September invitees due to their form with their club sides, were omitted from the AFCON qualifier squad.

Iheanacho and Bewene were, however, called up for the October 6 friendly against Russia in Nizhny Novgorod.

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3 shock returnees to Chelle’s Super Eagles squad

1. Ola Aina (Nottingham Forest)

The biggest name is Nottingham Forest defender Ola Aina, who has not featured for the Super Eagles since September 2025, when he was forced off after just 10 minutes with a hamstring tear during Nigeria’s 1-1 World Cup qualifier draw against South Africa at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein.

The injury cost him 116 days on the sidelines and effectively ruled him out of AFCON 2025 despite recovering in time for the tournament.

Aina was subsequently left out of the March 2026 Iran and Jordan friendlies, and the Unity Cup.

His call-up is his first Super Eagles invitation in more than 12 months and arrives on the back of his outstanding right-sided centre-back deployment for Forest in their 2-1 Premier League win over Aston Villa.

2. Benjamin Fredrick (Brentford)

The 21-year-old defender’s trajectory had been building before his setback. Fredrick started six consecutive Super Eagles matches under Chelle after his May 2025 debut against Jamaica, playing all 120 minutes of Nigeria’s 1-1 draw against DR Congo.

Days after the DR Congo defeat, Fredrick suffered a knee injury in Dender training that ruled him out of AFCON 2025 and the entire spring 2026 international window.

His recall to Chelle’s setup 10 months after his last cap is a clear vote of confidence from the Franco-Malian tactician, and reopens the door to his centre-back partnership with Calvin Bassey ahead of the AFCON 2027 tournament, although Semi Ajayi’s tip-top form makes that conversation nearly impossible.

3. Tolu Arokodare (Ajax)

Ajax loanee Tolu Arokodare is the third shock returnee, having last featured for Nigeria in the 16 November 2025 DR Congo playoff before being cut from Chelle’s final 28-man AFCON 2025 squad.

The 25-year-old had been in the provisional list but openly admitted the omission had felt inevitable given his club-level minutes at Wolves at the time.

His September recall arrives on the back of a red-hot 2026/27 start at Ajax that has produced five goals in eight appearances.

Arokodare’s absence from Nigeria has stretched across the same 10 months as Fredrick’s, meaning both players will reintegrate into the Chelle setup simultaneously ahead of the Madagascar fixture.

3 new invitees to Chelle’s Super Eagles squad

1. George Ilenikhena (Al-Ittihad)

The 20-year-old Al-Ittihad forward is arguably the most exciting of the three maiden call-ups.

Ilenikhena has produced eight goal contributions in nine games for the Saudi Pro League giants this season, and his call-up formally elevates one of the most expensive Nigerian teenage transfers in history onto the senior international stage.

2. Moses Usor (LASK)

The second new invitee is 24-year-old LASK forward Moses Usor, whose call-up came as a direct replacement for the injured Femi Azeez.

Usor’s breakthrough season at LASK produced 15 goals and five assists across 35 competitive appearances last season, and his 2026/27 form has produced three goals and four assists across 11 appearances heading into the AFCON qualifier window.

3. Isaac James (Alverca)

The third new invitee is 22-year-old Alverca left-back Isaac James, whose call-up addresses the left-back vacancy created by Zaidu Sanusi’s right adductor injury sustained during Porto’s 3-0 win over Académico de Viseu on 29 August.

Chelle’s scouts had watched James at Alverca on three separate occasions across the opening weeks of the 2026/27 season, and the recruitment case has now been formally settled.

James has started all six of Alverca’s Primeira Liga matches this season, playing 514 minutes and providing two assists.