Monaco midfielder Aleksandr Golovin and Krasnodar striker Dmitry Vorobyov are set to miss Russia's international friendly against Nigeria's Super Eagles on Tuesday evening.
Golovin has failed to recover from the ankle injury he sustained during Russia's 2-0 friendly victory over Iran on Tuesday, September 29.
The Monaco midfielder has not returned to training since picking up the injury, while Vorobyov has also been ruled out of Russia's upcoming fixtures.
Russia head coach Valery Karpin provided an update on the players' fitness ahead of the team's friendly against Namibia during a press conference.
Karpin confirmed that Vorobyov had left the national team camp, while Golovin would not feature against Namibia due to fitness concerns.
"Vorobyov has left. We're waiting for Danilov to be ready to play. Golovin will definitely not play against Namibia," Karpin said via Ria.
According to the Russian coach, Golovin could potentially have recovered in time to play against Nigeria, but the midfielder was released back to his club because of the unofficial nature of the upcoming international fixtures.
"He (Golovin) could have played for a while against Nigeria, but since the matches are unofficial, he was sent to his club's camp," he said at a press conference.
Russia are scheduled to face Namibia in a friendly in Yekaterinburg on Saturday, October 3, before taking on the Super Eagles at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium on Tuesday, October 6.
The absence of Golovin would be a boost for Nigeria ahead of the encounter, with the Super Eagles looking to return to winning ways following their disappointing defeat to Guinea-Bissau in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
Adeyemi Adewale
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