Iwobi Joins Eagles as Team Arrives in Lisbon for Portugal Friendly

*Genk defender Chris Akpan also in camp, Chukwueze expected to arrive today

Duro Ikhazuagbe

After missing the Poland friendly in Warsaw on Wednesday night, Fulham midfielder Alex Iwobi has joined the rest of the Super Eagles as the team landed in Lisbon on Thursday evening.

Nigeria and Portugal will meet in an international friendly next week Wednesday at the Estadio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa in Leiria, with kickoff at 8.45 pm (Portugal is in the same time zone as Nigeria).

Unlike Poland, Portugal qualified for the 2026 World Cup and will feature most of their top stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Paris St‑Germain quartet Vitinha, João Neves, Nuno Mendes and Gonçalo Ramos, among others.

Super Eagles Media Officer Promise Efoghe confirmed Iwobi’s arrival last night.

He also noted that AC Milan winger Samuel Chukwueze, who was on loan at Fulham last season, is expected to join the camp in Lisbon this morning.

“Alex Iwobi and Genk defender Christian Akpan have joined others in Lisbon; Samuel Chukwueze is expected on Friday,” the Media Officer said on the team’s WhatsApp page on Thursday night.

Except for Rafiu Durosinmi, who was excused to attend to private matters, all 19 players who were in the Poland friendly are in camp in Lisbon ahead of their June 10 fixture.

Although he is not yet in camp, there were speculations last night that Bright Osayi‑Samuel could rejoin the squad. Osayi’s position was well defended by new boy Abdullahi Bewene, who did not respect the Polish front line led by Robert Lewandowski.

Speaking about his first game for the Nigerian side, Bewene said he was proud to make his Super Eagles debut.

The Czech‑based defender played the entire match as Nigeria were held to a 2‑2 draw by the home team in Warsaw.

“I’m very happy and proud to represent my country, I’m ready to give more of this,” Bewene said.

Meanwhile, following the loss of focus in the final minutes of the game that led to the equalizer from Poland, both Calvin Bassey and Wilfred Ndidi insisted that such habits must change.

In a separate interview after the match, Bassey said the Super Eagles seemed to lack the mental strength to hold on to their leads and that this must be worked on. “It is important that we must see out our games, this is something we must have to work on,” Bassey said.

He added that maintaining concentration until the final whistle remains a key lesson for the team as they continue to develop their chemistry and tactical understanding.

Team captain Ndidi stressed that the Super Eagles must fight until the last whistle in all their games. “We always try as much as possible to get a win in every game. With our philosophy, with our vision, and most importantly, we must try to be at our best and try to see if we win our games, most especially, when we are leading, always.”