Nigeria head coach Eric Chelle plans to use the proposed friendly with Russia on October 6 as the first step in forming a new U23 team aimed at securing qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
Chelle, who is also in charge of the Olympic-age national side, is expected to give several young players based abroad the chance to impress while he assembles a competitive group for the qualifying campaign.
At least 10 eligible U23 players have reportedly been shortlisted for the Russia fixture. The group includes Wilfred George of Kristiansund BK, Ridwan Popoola of Kisvárda, Stephen Michael Fumen of Vendsyssel FF, Sani Suleiman of Al Qadsiah and Peter Edokpolor of Benfica.
Victory Akpe of FC Basel, Fulham prospect Chibuzo Nwoko, Abdullahi Umar of Hradec Králové, Brighton player Zadok Yohanna and Derby County midfielder David Ozoh are also understood to be under consideration.
The squad selected for the friendly is likely to be separate from the team Chelle will deploy in Nigeria’s 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers, enabling the coaching staff to focus specifically on younger options against Russia.
The match comes at an important time for Nigeria, who have been absent from the men’s Olympic football tournament for an extended period. Their most recent appearance came at Rio 2016, where the Dream Team secured bronze, following the gold medal won at Atlanta 1996 and the silver claimed at Beijing 2008.
Nigeria then missed out on qualification for Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. The Los Angeles 2028 effort therefore offers another chance to revive the nation’s distinguished record in Olympic football.
Chelle is also expected to consider talent from within Nigeria rather than relying solely on players based overseas. Standout U23-eligible performers in the Nigeria Premier Football League may be tracked and invited into the programme as the preparations develop.
The objective is to establish a broad squad that blends emerging players from abroad with the strongest young talent in the domestic league, instead of waiting until the qualifying tournament is underway to put the team together.
