Advantage Super Eagles? Zimbabwean anchorman faces lengthy injury spell 

Eric Chelle’s Super Eagles have been handed a major advantage ahead of their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying game against Zimbabwe, Soccernet.ng reports.

Zimbabwean defensive midfielder, Marvelous Nakamba, who has captained The Warriors in his last five games on the pitch, suffered an injury on club duty with Luton Town.

The 31-year-old has featured in 20 of Luton’s 35 Championship league games this season but had to be withdrawn at half-time against Watford. It has now been confirmed that Nakamba will miss six weeks due to a soleus injury.

Marvelous Nakamba of Luton Town during the match Watford vs Luton Town at Vicarage Road, Watford, United Kingdom, 23rd February 2025. [Photo Credit/ Imago].

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Luton Town head coach, Matt Bloomfield, confirmed the injury status of the experienced midfielder as their woes in the EFL Championship continue.

“Shandon [Baptiste] and Marv [Nakamba], both out six weeks. Both got soleus injuries, so we’ll be missing them for a little period of time. We took Marv off at half time [at Watford] because I felt like he wasn’t moving very well. I didn’t realise he was injured.

“We were getting overrun. We’ve spoken about that already. About how we need to be quicker. We need to be fitter. We need to be more robust and play more games regularly. So we’ve had to make three changes to affect the game at half time. and then I found out that he had a tight calf. Then I got told he had a scan and it was six weeks out,” the 41-year-old said in quotes revealed by Soccer 24.

Marvelous Nakamba during the match between Luton Town and Sheffield United at Kenilworth Road, Luton, England, on 15 February 2025. [Photo Credit/ Imago].

What does this mean for the Super Eagles?

With Nakamba injured, Nigeria have an advantage as their opponents are weakened by the absence of a vital midfield presence. Additionally, Nakamba is Zimbabwe’s captain, and their dressing room will not be the same without him.

Calvin Bassey, Zaidu Sanusi, Semi Ajayi and Victor Osimhen Afcon 2023 match between Cote D’Ivoire and Nigeria at Stade D Ebimpe on January 18, 2024, in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. [Photo Credit/ Imago].

However, Nigeria have problems of their own. Semi Ajayi will be out with a hamstring injury. Across the team, bar Osimhen and Dessers, the other attackers are only just building their form after returning from various injuries.

Samuel Chukwueze, Ademola Lookman, and Victor Boniface all just recently returned from spells on the sidelines and need to pick up the pace if Nigeria are to experience success during their World Cup qualifiers.

Nigeria will travel to face Rwanda on the 19th of March before welcoming Zimbabwe to the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium on the 22nd of March.