Russia's Coach Karpin to Change Line-Up for Match Against Super Eagles

Russia head coach Valery Karpin is set to make big changes to his team for the friendly match against the Super Eagles on Tuesday. This comes after their game against Namibia, according to Football Intel Africa.

Karpin sees Nigeria as one of the toughest teams Russia will face in October. After Russia’s 2-0 victory over Iran, he mentioned that the Super Eagles would be a similar challenge.

“Against Nigeria, it’ll be pretty much the same as yesterday. It won’t be easy for us. I think we’ll have some major changes in our lineup. It might be even tougher for the Russian team than against Iran,” he said, as quoted by Euro Football.

Before naming his squad for the friendlies against Iran, Nigeria, and Namibia, Karpin spoke to the Russian Football Union. He used the FIFA rankings to highlight the strength of both teams.

“Two worthy, strong opponents: Iran and Nigeria. Just look at the FIFA rankings. These teams are among the top 30. There’s no need to talk about them much. We’ve all seen them,” Karpin said.

Both Nigeria and Iran rank higher than Russia. Karpin noted that his players are excited to see how they perform against these teams.

“This will be our third game against Iran in a while, and our second against Nigeria. The level of these teams is clear. We’re interested to see how we compare against such opponents,” he added.

Russia will play Namibia on October 3 before facing Nigeria on October 6 at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium. Karpin acknowledged that Namibia will be a different challenge but warned his players not to take them lightly.

The Super Eagles come into this match after a mixed start in the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. They won 2-1 against Madagascar in Uyo but lost 3-0 to Guinea-Bissau in Bissau. This leaves Nigeria in second place in Group L with three points. The match is a chance for Nigeria’s technical team to assess the squad and try new combinations before the next qualifiers.

The last time both teams played was in Moscow 16 months ago. Tolu Arokodare scored to cancel out a Semi Ajayi own goal, ending the match in a 1-1 draw for Nigeria.