Okoye’s return boosts Eagles’ World Cup preparations

• Chelle begins consultations
• Dikko, Gusau inspect proposed NFF hotel, training pitch site

Less than two months to Nigeria’s 2026 World Cup qualifying games against Rwanda and Zimbabwe, the Super Eagles’ camp has been boosted by news that Udinese goalkeeper, Maduka Okoye, has returned from injury.

Okoye has been sidelined for over a month after undergoing surgery to repair a torn scapholunate ligament in his right wrist. But Italian publication, TuttoUdinese, reported that he has now resumed training with his club, just when Coach Eric Chelle is preparing his list of players for the must-win qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe in March.

Okoye is expected to make the list of players for the matches pending FIFA’s decision on the alleged suspicious betting patterns related to a yellow card he received during Udinese’ 2-1 defeat of Lazio last year.

According to reports, if found guilty, Okoye could face a lengthy ban from all football-related activities, as Italian regulations impose severe penalties for athletes directly involved in manipulating match events.

In that case, the former Fortuna Dusseldorf star will be ineligible to play for the Eagles in the two games.

The Guardian learnt that the Super Eagles management has started final preparations, including consultations with players, following FIFA’s official announcement of the dates for the matches against Rwanda and Zimbabwe.

According to FIFA, Rwanda will host Nigeria on March 21 at the Amahoro Stadium, Kigali, while the Super Eagles will entertain Zimbabwe at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, on March 25.

A Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) source said that Coach Chelle and the federation’s technical committee are working towards presenting a