Super Eagles of Nigeria head coach, Jose Peseiro, has named his final 25-man squad for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament, tagged Côte d’Ivoire 2023.
Nigeria were drawn against hosts Cote d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau in Group A. The 25-man squad was posted on the official X handle of the Super Eagles on Friday.
Captain Ahmed Musa returns to the squad after he was left out of the starting games to the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification series, while South Africa-based goalkeeper Stanley Nwabili was selected alongside Francis Uzoho and Olorunleke Ojo.
The 25 ready to give their all, ready to do it again! #SoarSuperEagles #LetsDoItAgain #TotalEnergiesAFCON2023 pic.twitter.com/e5eCGyJyCs
— 🇳🇬 Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) December 29, 2023
Peseiro listed three goalkeepers, nine defenders, five midfielders and eight forwards. Notable names on the list are African Footballer of the Year Victor Osimhen, Kelechi Iheanacho, Alex Iwobi, William Troost-Ekong, Ahmed Musa, Victor Boniface, Moses Simon and Samuel Chukwueze.
Also included are Wilfred Ndidi, Ola Aina, Semi Ajayi, Francis Uzoho, Zaidu Sanusi, Calvin Bassey, Kenneth Omeruo, Ademola Lookman, Umar Sadiq, among others.
All 25 players will depart from their current bases on Tuesday, 2nd January 2024, to fly to Abu Dhabi, UAE for a one-week training camp that will last until Tuesday, 9th January. The team will fly back to Lagos on the same day and then jet to the Ivorian capital, Abidjan on Wednesday, 10th January.
Nigeria, who will be participating in the AFCON for the 20th time, were champions as hosts in 1980, victorious in Tunisia in 1994 and crown winners in South Africa in 2013.
The three-time AFCON winners will begin its quest for a fourth title against Equatorial Guinea in their Group A opener.
ALL THE INVITED PLAYERS:
Goalkeepers: Stanley Nwabili (Chippa United, South Africa); Francis Uzoho (Omonia FC, Cyprus); Olorunleke Ojo (Enyimba FC).
Defenders: Olaoluwa Aina (Nottingham Forest, England); Chidozie Awaziem (Boavista FC, Portugal); Bright Osayi-Samuel (Fenerbahce FC, Turkey); William Troost-Ekong (PAOK Salonika, Greece); Bruno Onyemaechi (Boavista FC, Portugal); Kenneth Omeruo (Kasimpasa FC, Turkey); Oluwasemilogo Ajayi (West Bromwich Albion, England); Calvin Bassey (Fulham FC, England); Zaidu Sanusi (FC Porto, Portugal).
Midfielders: Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City, England); Raphael Onyedika (Club Brugge, Belgium); Joe Ayodele-Aribo (Southampton FC, England); Frank Onyeka (Brentford FC, England); Alex Iwobi (Fulham FC, England).
Forwards: Ahmed Musa (Sivasspor K, Turkey); Victor Osimhen (Napoli SC, Italy); Kelechi Iheanacho (Leicester City, England); Sadiq Umar (Real Sociedad, Spain); Moses Simon (FC Nantes, France); Ademola Lookman (Atalanta FC, Italy); Samuel Chukwueze (AC Milan, Italy); Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany).
