Victor Osimhen injury: How Super Eagles can lineup without their star striker

Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle faces a demanding tactical challenge after Victor Osimhen was forced off in Galatasaray’s Istanbul derby against Basaksehir yesterday, Afrik-Foot reports.

The 27-year-old scored the opener in the 16th minute, his sixth goal in four matches this season, before pulling up after a run in behind and asking to be substituted.

Turkish Doctor Gürkan Kubilay has suggested the injury may involve a ligament tear inside the muscle, an injury classification that typically requires three to four months of recovery. Galatasaray are expected to release an official medical update in the coming days.

The timing could scarcely be worse. Nigeria open their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign at home to Madagascar on 23 September before travelling to face Guinea-Bissau four days later, both fixtures in a Group L that Osimhen was expected to lead the line for.

The injury also joins an already lengthening Super Eagles doubt list that includes left-back Zaidu Sanusi, winger Yira Sor, midfielders Raphael Onyedika and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, and centre-back Semi Ajayi.

Coach Eric Chelle now has to redesign the Super Eagles attack around Osimhen’s absence rather than merely reshuffling within it.

3 ways Super Eagles can line up without Victor Osimhen

1. Tolu Arokodare alongside Akor Adams

The most conservative and sensible option is to keep the tactical structure Chelle has built around Osimhen and simply replace the number nine slot with the closest available profile match, Tolu Arokodare.

The 25-year-old joined Ajax on a season-long loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers in July 2026 and has already scored four goals in six games.

At 1.97m tall, he offers the target-man physicality, aerial dominance and hold-up profile that could give Chelle’s system an advantage.

The upside is minimal tactical disruption. The downside is that Arokodare is not Osimhen, and asking him to carry the same load in a competitive AFCON qualifier requires trusting a player still finding his rhythm at Ajax.

2. Switch to a 4-2-3-1 with Adams as the sole striker

The most tactically instructive option would see Chelle abandon the two-striker system entirely and revert to the 4-2-3-1 he used in Nigeria’s international friendlies against Poland and Portugal earlier this year, with Akor Adams operating as the lone forward.

The shape works because Adams offers the mobility and pressing profile to lead a line alone, and Chelle already has an in-form deeper midfielder to sit alongside Wilfred Ndidi in the double pivot.

Alex Iwobi has spent the last 18 months playing from deep at Fulham, and his passing range since that switch has been impeccable for the Super Eagles.

That releases the front four to lean fully into pace and creativity. Ademola Lookman could play on the left or down the middle, while Samuel Chukwueze and Chidera Ejuke, who’ve all been in good form, could claim a place in Eric Chelle’s starting lineup.

3. A fresh strike partnership of Rafiu Durosinmi and Cyriel Dessers

The third and boldest option would see Chelle use Osimhen’s absence to force through the squad reset, pairing Rafiu Durosinmi and Cyriel Dessers up top in the familiar 4-3-1-2.

The case for both is that Chelle’s established alternatives have not made his life easy. Paul Onuachu has now gone 151 days without a Süper Lig goal for Trabzonspor.

Terem Moffi joined Hamburg from Nice this summer and has not yet nailed down a starting shirt. Every one of the traditional Osimhen deputies is either short of form, short of match sharpness or both.

Durosinmi fills that void. The 23-year-old joined Genk from Pisa for €10.5 million, and has responded with four goals in his opening four Belgian Pro League appearances.

Standing at 1.92m, he brings the physical target-man profile Osimhen used to provide, and he arrives in Nigeria in red-hot form.

Dessers also slots in nicely. After an injury-ridden campaign that saw him play no minutes at the AFCON 2025 tournament in Morocco, the former Rangers striker has scored four goals in five games for Panathinaikos this season.