Coventry City striker Taiwo Awoniyi has been called up to replace Victor Osimhen in Nigeria’s squad for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau.

The Nigeria Football Federation announced the change on Sunday through the official Super Eagles account on X.

Awoniyi’s call-up comes after Osimhen was ruled out of the two qualifiers due to a right adductor muscle strain.

Osimhen had initially been included in coach Eric Chelle’s squad, with hopes that he would recover in time for the September international window. However, his recovery took longer than expected, forcing him to miss Galatasaray’s league match against Trabzonspor on September 19.

Awoniyi, 29, recently joined newly promoted English club Coventry City from Nottingham Forest in a reported £9 million deal.

Nigeria will face Madagascar on September 25 before playing Guinea-Bissau on September 29 in the AFCON 2027 qualifiers.

The Super Eagles are also scheduled to face Russia in an international friendly on October 6, but Awoniyi’s replacement call-up is specifically for the two AFCON qualifying matches.