OGUN, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Former Super Eagles and Moroka Swallows goalkeeper coach Greg Etafia has shared reassuring news regarding Nigeria’s number one goalkeeper, Stanley Nwabali.
Etafia, reporting from South Africa, revealed that the 28-year-old Chippa United star has begun light training on grass, showing promising signs of recovery ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
Nwabali has been sidelined with ankle and hand injuries since Nigeria’s penalty shootout loss to DR Congo in the 2026 World Cup qualifying play-offs in Rabat, raising fears about his readiness for the tournament, which kicks off on December 21.
“He has started training,” Etafia revealed in an interview with a Lagos-based sports radio station.
“I spoke to one of his teammates, the goalkeeper who was playing during his absence, and he told me that now he has started training again, and he’s feeling better.”
The former Nigeria international added that Nwabali remains with the Chippa United squad as they prepare for their break.
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“They haven’t gone on break yet. I think they will go on the 20th or the 22nd, so he’s still around the team. He’s feeling better now, and I think he has started both gym work and grass training, which is very good for him,” he said.
Etafia’s update provides a more encouraging assessment than recent comments from Chippa United head coach Vusimuzi Vilakazi, who had expressed doubt about the goalkeeper’s AFCON availability.
“He’s been playing with that injured hand for a while now, and he aggravated the injury in Morocco,” Vilakazi told supersport.com.
“I don’t think he will make it, but when I was talking to him, he was confident that he would recover very soon.”
However, Etafia expressed confidence that the Super Eagles’ number one will be ready for the tournament.
“We’ll see what’s going to happen, but from what I’m hearing and from what the guys at Chippa have said, I think he’s going to be okay,” he said. “He just needs to keep working, and if he continues like this, he should be ready. I’m confident he will make it in time.”
Nwabali’s likely return would be a major boost to Nigeria’s AFCON ambitions, especially after his outstanding performances at the last tournament, where his composure and leadership in goal earned him widespread praise and helped the Super Eagles reach the final.