Former Super Eagles midfielder, Sani Kaita, expects Nigeria’s October 6 friendly against Russia to produce an entertaining contest.
The match is scheduled for the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, with both nations meeting for only the second time at senior international level.
The previous meeting ended in a 1-1 draw in June 2025, with Tolu Arokodare scoring Nigeria’s equaliser after Semi Ajayi’s own goal had given Russia the lead.
“As a great admirer of the Russian people and Russian culture, I am very pleased to see that good relations are developing between Nigeria and Russia.
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“In Nigeria, they understand that the Russian national team is a serious opponent, and we know how high-quality the Russian team is,” Kaita, who earned 22 international caps, told Championat.com.
The former Sparta Rotterdam, Monaco and Lokomotiv Moscow midfielder also spoke about the expected absence of Victor Osimhen, who is recovering from an injury.
Kaita described Osimhen’s absence as a major blow to Nigeria but believes coach Eric Chelle has enough attacking options to cope.
“Of course, Osimhen’s absence is a huge loss for our team. However, Nigeria has other high-level players who can replace him, and the coaching staff has a variety of attacking options.
“I’m confident it will be a top-notch match. My prediction for the game is 2-1 for Russia,” he added.
Meanwhile, former Soviet Union striker Mikhail Gershkovich believes Nigeria will provide Russia with a stern test despite the absence of several key players.
Chelle will be without Osimhen and Ademola Lookman, as well as Premier League players Frank Onyeka, Ola Aina, Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey and Semi Ajayi.
Bruno Onyemaechi and George Ilenikhena are also unavailable for the October 6 friendly.
Gershkovich expects Russia coach Valery Karpin to use the Namibia fixture to assess some of his squad players before fielding a stronger side against Nigeria.
“The Russian national team has two more games. Against Namibia, as Karpin likes, we can try out the players.
“And against Nigeria, I expect the main lineup to be back in action. I’d like the team to consolidate this performance so we can enjoy it again.
“Nigeria is a tough opponent; even though they’ll be missing several key players, they have a lot of reserves. Whoever starts against them will be a serious force,” Gershkovich told Championat.
