Royal Antwerp midfielder, Alhassan Yusuf, will now replace the injured Leicester City’s Wilfred Ndidi as the Super Eagles prepare for the Africa Cup of Nations to be held in Cote d’Ivoire.
Ndidi missed his team’s runaway Championship leaders Leicester City’s 4-1 win over Huddersfield Town on Monday due to an unspecified injury.
Team spokesman Babafemi Raji disclosed this to journalists on Wednesday where he said Ndidi has been replaced by 23-year-old Yusuf, who has been in good form with the Belgian champions.
🔈❗️Afcon camp update: Wilfred Ndidi Out; Alhassan Yusuf In. #soarsupereagles #letsdoitagain pic.twitter.com/zFNgxOYe0T
— 🇳🇬 Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) January 3, 2024
Yusuf has yet to be capped by Nigeria but was named in the 40-man provisional squad for the Cup of Nations.
Ndidi’s Leicester City teammate Kelechi Iheanacho said he hopes to shake off a muscle injury to be available for the competition, which is being hosted by Ivory Coast and kicks off on January 13 in Abidjan.
The three-time African champions are training in the United Arab Emirates ahead of the tournament.
They have been drawn in Group A alongside Ivory Coast, Guinea Bissau and Equatorial Guinea.
They face Equatorial Guinea in their opening match on January 14.