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The Nigeria Football Federation reversed its decision to include Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen in the squad for the upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau, as he continued to recover from a muscle strain.
"We wish Victor a speedy recovery," the federation said in a post on X through the national team’s account, after it had reportedly initially rejected Galatasaray’s request to leave the 27-year-old striker out of the qualifiers.
Osimhen sustained the injury during Galatasaray’s 3-2 win over Istanbul Basaksehir in the fourth week of the Super Lig season on Sept. 4 and was taken off in the 33rd minute.
The Nigerian Football Federation nevertheless called him up for the upcoming AFCON qualifiers despite his ongoing recovery.
Nigerian media reported that the federation initially cited the striker’s importance to the national team, describing the matches against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau as "very critical."
Nigeria then announced a 24-man squad for the qualifiers, with Osimhen included despite Galatasaray’s request to leave him out. The squad also includes Trabzonspor defender Chibuike Nwaiwu and Besiktas midfielder Wilfred Ndidi.
The decision comes after Osimhen was left out of Galatasaray’s squad for Saturday’s away match against Trabzonspor, which the reigning Turkish champions lost 4-0.
The expectation was that he could recover in time to return to competitive action against Trabzonspor and then join the Super Eagles for the international window.
At Papara Park, Trabzonspor took the lead in the fourth minute through Mohamed Salah, who later set up Noah Saviolo for the second goal in the 39th minute. Salah struck again in the 44th minute to give the hosts a 3-0 halftime lead before completing his hat trick in the 80th minute.
Galatasaray midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu was sent off after a VAR review in the 85th minute.
The 4-0 defeat left Galatasaray on 13 points after six matches, while Trabzonspor moved to 10 points and fifth place in the Super Lig standings.
In his four appearances this season, the striker scored six goals and provided two assists, remaining the club’s main goal threat.
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