Russia head coach Valery Karpin believes Nigeria’s expected changes will not significantly alter the Super Eagles’ approach when both sides meet in the international friendly encounter on Tuesday evening.
Several players have withdrawn from the Super Eagles squad for the friendly against the European side due to various reasons, including injuries, club restrictions and other issues.
Among those ruled out are captain Wilfred Ndidi, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Akpe Victory, Moses Usor and Raphael Onyedika, further depleting Nigeria’s squad ahead of the encounter.
With several key players unavailable, Karpin expects Nigeria to hand opportunities to a number of debutants but believes the changes will not significantly affect the Super Eagles’ overall style of play.
"Nigeria will have a lot of debutants, but the style of play hasn't changed. I don't think we'll see anything new. Overall, nothing will change because of the newcomers," Karpin told reporters.
The Super Eagles will face Russia at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium and hope to return to winning ways after their disappointing 0-3 defeat to Guinea-Bissau in the 2027 AFCON qualifiers.
Adeyemi Adewale
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