Eric Chelle Replaces Injured Attacker With a Defender Ahead of World Cup Qualifier

• Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle has made a significant replacement in his 23-man list ahead of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers
• The Malian is strengthening the defense of the team by replacing an injured striker with a defender
• Nigeria sits fifth in Group C, with only three points from four matches in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers

Eric Chelle has replaced the injured forward Nathan Tella with defender Jordan Torunarigha.

Tella picked up the injury ahead of Leverkusen’s 2-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday night.

Torunarigha has featured in 33 matches for Genk across all competitions this season.

Tella out, Torunarigha in

The Nigeria Football Federation called Jordan Torunarigha to replace injured Nathan Tella.

As noted by Super Eagles on X, Chelle has moved swiftly to replace Tella, calling up Gent defender Jordan Torunarigha.

The Chemnitz-born defender has featured in 22 matches providing one assist for Gent in the 2024/25 Belgian Pro League.

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The former Mali coach brought in Torunarigha to strengthen the defense ahead of Nigeria’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda and Zimbabwe.

His inclusion is expected to provide additional depth and experience to the backline, which already includes William Ekong, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Bruno Onyemaechi, Calvin Bassey, Olaoluwa Aina, and Igoh Ogbu.

Alonso’s comment on Tella

Bayern Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso said Nigeria international Nathan Tella was not ready for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match against Bayern Munich on Tuesday night.

The Liverpool legend said Tella was ruled out due to a muscular injury.

The 43-year-old said the injury could also sideline him for the upcoming league clash against Stuttgart on Sunday. He said via Kicker:

"He wasn't ready to play today," Xabi Alonso explained regarding Tapsoba. The same applied to striker Nathan Tella , whom many expected to be in the starting lineup and whom the coach had included.

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"A lot has happened in one week," said Xabi Alonso, "it would have been good for both of them if they had been able to play."

"This morning we tried. The decision was that both weren't ready. Yesterday they only trained at 50 percent," explained Xabi Alonso. "We'll have to see what happens on Sunday."

Leverkusen are still eight points behind Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, while they are also in the semi-finals of the DFB Pokal against 3.Liga side Arminia Bielefeld per OneFootball.

Chelle eyes maximum points

Eric Chelle has promised to make Nigerians proud ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers this month.

Nigeria will face the Amavubi of Rwanda in Kigali on March 21 before playing the Warriors of Zimbabwe in Uyo four days later per ESPN.

Reacting on his X handle, the 47-year-old said the three-time African Champion will fly over Rwanda and Zimbabwe. He said:

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Nigeria have earned three points from four matches in Group C of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Osimhen desperate for win

Legit.ng earlier reported that Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen has explained why Nigeria must qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup after Eric Chelle released his final 23-man squad.

Osimhen notes this as something that could cause them to have big regrets if they fail to qualify for the next tournament.

Osimhen has yet to feature in any of the previous four games, having missed all due to injury. His exclusion from the June 2024 qualifiers created rancour between him and Finidi George.

Proofreading by Jimmy Modise, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng