Osimhen, Arokodare among early birds as Super Eagles camp opens in Kigali

Galatasaray and Genk forwards Victor Osimhen and Tolu Arokodare were among the first set of arrivals in Kigali as the Super Eagles camp opened officially on Sunday night ahead of Nigeria’s crucial World Cup qualifying fixtures against Rwanda and Zimbabwe, Footynaija.com reports.

The Super Eagles are on the hunt for two important victories in order to keep their hopes of securing a ticket to the 2026 mundial alive. To achieve this goal, new head coach Eric Chelle named a very strong 23-man squad despite leaving out some well established names.

With just four days to go before their first game against Rwanda, both coaching staff and invited stars have begun to arrive at the training camp in Kigali to begin preparations. 

Osimhen, who has been in fantastic form for Galatasaray this season was one of the first stars to arrive. The 25-year-old striker arrives off the back of scoring a hat-trick against Antalyaspor in his last Super Lig outing.

Genk hitman Tolu Arokodare, who has also been lighting up the Belgian Pro League, is already in Kigali alongside Olympiacos defender Bruno Onyemaechi and Singida Black Stars goalkeeper Amas Obasogie.

Other early birds include Nigeria Professional Football League duo Kayode Bankole (Remo Stars) and Papa Mustapha Daniel (Niger Tornadoes). Assistant coaches Daniel Ogunmodede and Fidelis Ilechukwu have also touched down in Kigali.

The Super Eagles are still anticipating the arrival of the bulk of their squad before full preparations can commence. However, the early arrival of the likes of Osimhen and Arokodare bodes well for Nigeria in terms of player’s dedication and commitment to securing that World Cup ticket.

Location, date and time of Nigeria’s upcoming games

The Super Eagles will take on Rwanda on Friday, March 21, at Stade Amahoro in Kigali, before clashing with Zimbabwe at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo on Tuesday, March 25. Both matches are scheduled to kick off at 5:00 PM WAT.