Gift Orban named in Gent travelling squad six days after minor injury denied him first Nigeria cap

Six days after Gift Orban was denied his first Nigeria cap due to a minor injury, the prolific striker has been passed fit to return to action. 

Orban has been selected in Gent's traveling squad for their Jupiler Pro League clash with OH Leuven at the  Den Dreef Stadion (Heverlee) on Sunday evening.

Manager Hein Vanhaezebrouck has selected nineteen players for the trip to Leuven with Orban among the four strikers listed.

Jordan Torunarigha, who received his first Super Eagles call-up for the dead rubber 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match with São Tomé and Príncipe, is also part of the group. 

The former Germany underage international could not make his international debut last weekend due to a coaching decision, with Nigeria boss Jose Peseiro opting to hand minutes to Tyronne Ebuehi and Raphael Onyedika instead. 

As for Orban, he complained about a minor discomfort in the leg in the penultimate workout before the meeting with São Tomé and Príncipe, and was not risked for the game. 

The 21-year-old has picked up where he left off last season by scoring six goals in his first nine games for Gent in 2023-2024 - a form that earned him a spot on Nigeria's 23-man roster for their September international. 

Ifeanyi Emmanuel 

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