Welcome to ESPN India Edition
Nigerian striker Victor Boniface will miss the African Cup of Nations and will undergo surgery for an adductor injury suffered during preparation for the tournament, his club, Bayer Leverkusen, announced on Tuesday.
The Bundesliga club announced that his injury will keep the striker out of action for at least three months following his absence in Nigeria’s final warm-up friendly against Guinea on Monday.
– ESPN Broadcast: LaLiga, Bundesliga, (USA)
“Victor Boniface is excluded from the upcoming African Cup of Nations and is also not available for the club,” Leverkusen said in a statement.
Boniface suffered a right adductor tendon injury during training camp in Dubai. This is the result of today’s ultrasound in Cologne. Boniface will undergo surgery in the coming days. The striker is expected to return to the team in early April. “
The Bundesliga will resume on Friday after the international break.
“Good luck guys. I wish you all @ng_supereagles,” Boniface wrote on his Instagram account.
He is Bundesliga leaders Leverkusen’s top scorer with 10 goals in 16 league games this season.
Boniface made his debut in October and has since won four more international caps.
His injury follows the recent withdrawal of Nigerian midfielder Wilfred Ndidi, who was injured in Leicester City’s 2-0 win over Cardiff City on December 29.
Ndidi’s Leicester team-mate Kelechi Iheanacho is also suffering from an injury and the striker is still being assessed at Nigeria’s educational camp in the hope that he will be fit for the tournament, which begins on Saturday and ends on February 11.
Nigeria open their Nations Cup campaign on Sunday with a Group A match against Equatorial Guinea before facing hosts Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau.