Rangers forward Cyriel Dessers has been handed a recall to the Nigeria squad on the back of his outstanding 2025 Unity Cup performance, which the Super Eagles won this offseason in London.
Dessers is one of 31 players named by Super Eagles coach Eric Sekou Chelle for the two World Cup qualifying games in September against Rwanda and South Africa.
Despite his club form, and outings for Nigeria in unofficial matches, Dessers has rarely been given a chance for fixtures that matter, and he will be eager to make the final squad for these must-win clashes.
The matches could decide whether the three-time African champions keep alive their slim hopes of making it to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, or wake up to the reality of elimination.
Sekou Chelle’s list features a mix of recurring stars, returning faces and refreshing new prospects for what are two decisive fixtures.
Also earning recalls are goalkeeper Adeleye Adebayo, defender Chidozie Awaziem and forward Terem Moffi.
Other Unity Cup standouts who earned callups to the squad are young defender Benjamin Fredericks, who was called up to the tournament at the last minute, but ended up impressing; fellow defenders Felix Agu and Igoh Ogbu, along with midfielder Christantus Uche, all of whom offer youthful energy.
Sporting Lagos goalkeeper Ebenezer Harcourt made history by becoming the youngest goalkeeper to play for the Super Eagles, aged 15, when he kept goal in the last game of the recent African Nations Championships (CHAN) where the Super Eagles were eliminated in the group stage, is the only player from the domestic league to make the squad.
The rest of the provisional squad is populated by regulars like team captain William Ekong, first-choice goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, defenders Olaoluwa Aina and Calvin Bassey, midfielders Alex Iwobi and Wilfred Ndidi, and forwards Victor Osimhen, Ademola Lookman and Simon Moses, amongst others.
Nigeria sit a distant fourth on the log, with their chances of qualifying for the tournament all but over and needing to win all of their remaining games just to stand a chance of qualifying.
“These matches are crucial to our qualification journey,” Chelle said in a statement from the NFF.
They take on Rwanda at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo on September 6 in a Matchday 7 encounter, before flying to Bloemfontein to confront South Africa in a potentially-explosive Matchday 8 encounter on September 9.
A draw or loss would end the Super Eagles chances of qualification for the World Cup.
Provisional squad
Goalkeepers: Stanley Nwabali (Chippa United, South Africa); Amas Obasogie (Singida Blackstars, Tanzania); Adeleye Adebayo (Volos FC, Greece); Ebenezer Harcourt (Sporting FC)
Defenders: William Ekong (Al-Kholood, Saudi Arabia); Calvin Bassey (Fulham FC, England); Olaoluwa Aina (Nottingham Forest, England); Bright Osayi-Samuel (Birmingham City, England); Bruno Onyemaechi (Olympiakos, Greece); Igoh Ogbu (SK Slavia Prague, Czech Republic); Chidozie Awaziem (Nantes FC, France); Felix Agu (Werder Bremen, Germany); Benjamin Fredericks (Dender FC, Belgium)
Midfielders: Alex Iwobi (Fulham FC, England); Frank Onyeka (Brentford FC, England); Alhassan Yusuf Abdullahi (New England Revolution, USA); Wilfred Ndidi (Besiktas FC, Turkey); Fisayo Dele-Bashiru (SS Lazio, Italy); Raphael Onyedika (Club Brugge, Belgium); Christantus Uche (Getafe CF, Spain)
Forwards: Ademola Lookman (Atalanta BC, Italy); Samuel Chukwueze (AC Milan, Italy); Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray FC, Turkey); Simon Moses (Paris FC, France); Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany); Cyriel Dessers (Glasgow Rangers, Scotland); Sadiq Umar (Real Sociedad, Spain); Nathan Tella (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany); Tolu Arokodare (KRC Genk, Belgium); Terem Moffi (OGC Nice, France); Adams Akor (Sevilla FC, Spain)