The Super Eagles will begin their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) journey with qualifying matches against Benin Republic and Rwanda.

Nigeria will aim to bounce back after a poor World Cup Qualifying matches, as they start their campaign in Uyo on September 7, against Benin Republic, followed by a match against Rwanda on September 10 in Kigali.

The tournament itself will be held in Morocco from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026.

23 Players To Assemble in Uyo

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has announced a 23-man squad for these with players expected to begin arriving at the Uyo camp today.

Early arrivals include William Troost-Ekong, Ola Aina, Olisa Ndah, Semi Ajayi, Ademola Lookman, Taiwo Awoniyi and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru.

Among those invited for the qualifiers are Calvin Bassey and Alex Iwobi, Wilfred Ndidi, Moses Simon, Victor Boniface, and Samuel Chukwueze.

Other players, including goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, Victor Osimhen, Amas Obasogie, Maduka Okoye, Raphael Onyedika, and Kelechi Iheanacho, who played for their clubs on Sunday, are expected as soon as possible.

Coaching Staff and Preparations

The Super Eagles will be led by Augustine Eguavoen, the NFF’s Technical Director, for these qualifiers.

The NFF confirmed Daniel Ogunmodede and Fidelis Ilechukwu will joining the coaching team to assist the interim coach.

This comes after German coach Bruno Labbadia, who was initially announced as the new head coach last Tuesday, turned down Nigeria’s offer due to issues related to German tax laws.

NFF President Ibrahim Musa Gusau explained that the agreement with Labbadia fell through because of the coach’s insistence that the Federation cover the tax obligations tied to his salary under German law.

However, the tax issue became a stumbling block that the NFF could not settle for.

“We were doing our best to be flexible in the discussions, but he was adamant that the NFF had to pay the full tax amount as well. We simply cannot do that,” Gusau said.