Nigerian head coach Eric Chelle has expressed confidence in his team, stating that they are highly focused ahead of their 2025 AFCON opener against Tanzania, SportPremi reports.
The Super Eagles face the Taifa Stars as they begin their campaign at the 2025 African Cup of Nations in Morocco, eyeing maximum points in their hunt for a fourth African title.
However, they will be without several members of the team who have either been dropped or will miss out due to injury problems.
Exciting young defender Benjamin Fredrick suffered a knee injury during training at Belgian side Dender, which ruled out his participation from the tournament.
- Check this: Four Super Eagles players to watch against Tanzania
- Onazi warns Nigeria against tough Tanzania test
Experienced defender William Troost-Ekong also announced his retirement few weeks to the tournament, leaving the country short of options in the defence.
Ola Aina also failed to recover in time to participate at the tournament, while Udinese goalkeeper Maduka Okoye was surprisingly left out of the squad.
Other notable absentees includes the likes of Victor Boniface, Taiwo Awoniyi and Kelechi Iheanacho, who were part of the squad over the past year.
Everything Eric Chelle said ahead of Tanzania clash
Eric Chelle joined the Nigerian national team earlier this year and will be hoping on a better finish than his predecessor, who led the country to silver medal at the last African Cup of Nations tournament in Ivory Coast.
The former Mali tactician will also be hoping to bounce back from World Cup disappointment, after the Super Eagles failed in their bid to qualify for the 2026 edition.
Speaking ahead of Tuesday’s clash, Chelle expressed confidence in the available players and maintained that they are focused on getting very positive outcomes.
“No, I am not worried. I trust my players. Of course, I would prefer these guys to be here, but now I am with my squad and I trust them so much. We have a strong defence and we have worked a lot on it”, the gaffer revealed.
“We are focused on our game plan. When you want to defend, it is not only about the defenders; it is about all the players on the pitch. Everyone is focused on that, for sure.”
On the clash against Tanzania
“Definitely, we are ready to play this game. At the moment, I cannot tell you which players will start because I do not want to, and we still have our final training session today to work on it”, Chelle continued.
Nigeria face Tanzania in their opening group game on Tuesday, before playing Tunisia in their second group C match on the 27th.
The Super Eagles conclude group stage action against Uganda on the 30th, hoping to book their spot in the knockout rounds which commences on the 3rd of January, 2026
