Olawoyin replaces Tella in Super Eagles squad for South Africa, Benin

Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Nathan Tella has withdrawn from the Super Eagles squad ahead of the Nigerian national team’s World Cup qualifiers.

The national team will be playing against South Africa and Benin in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

With Tella’s withdrawal, Caykur Rizespor of Turkey star Ibrahim Olawoyin will join the Super Eagles squad.

“WCQ Camp Update: Nathan Tella of Bayer Leverkusen has excused himself from the upcoming WCQ matches due to family reasons. Coach Finidi George has now called up Ibrahim Olawoyin of Caykur Rizespor of Turkey,” the national team announced on its X account.

The Super Eagles camp for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and Benin Republic will open on Monday, June 3. Nigeria will face South Africa at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo on Friday, June 7, before travelling to Ivory Coast to face Benin Republic on Monday, June 10.

While there have been speculations that the team’s camp will be opened this weekend, the Director of Media and Communications of the Nigeria Football Federation, Ademola Olajire, confirmed that the camp will open on Monday.

“Monday, June 3,” Olajire wrote when asked by our correspondent about the camp opening.

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Why are you flagging this comment?

I disagree with this user

Targeted harassment - posted harassing comments or discussions targeting me, or encouraged others to do so

Spam - posted spam comments or discussions

Inappropriate profile - profile contains inappropriate images or text

Threatening content - posted directly threatening content

Private information - posted someone else's personally identifiable information

Before flagging, please keep in mind that Disqus does not moderate communities. Your username