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Former Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong has announced his retirement from international football, just 19 days before the Super Eagles begin their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations campaign.
The Saudi Arabia-based centre-back, who was included in coach Eric Chelle’s preliminary 54-man squad, ends a decade-long international career after 83 appearances.
Troost-Ekong, 32, was a standout performer at the previous AFCON in the Ivory Coast, where he was named player of the tournament despite Nigeria losing 2-1 in the final.
His last competitive outing for Nigeria came in a 2-1 World Cup qualifier win over Lesotho, followed by a substitute appearance in a 4-0 victory against Rwanda.
Nigeria later narrowly missed out on World Cup qualification after losing to the Democratic Republic of Congo on penalties in the play-offs, with Chelle opting to field Calvin Bassey and Semi Ayaji as his preferred centre-backs.
In a heartfelt social media post, Troost-Ekong described representing Nigeria as the greatest privilege of his life.
“The journey may end here, but my support never will,” he wrote, bringing down the curtain on a decade with the Super Eagles. Midfielder Wilfred Ndidi, based in Türkiye, has assumed the captaincy in his absence.
Nigeria, three-time AFCON winners, will begin their Group C campaign against Tanzania on December 23, also facing Tunisia and Uganda in the group stage.
The tournament format allows mini-league winners, runners-up, and the best four of the six third-placed teams to progress to the round of 16.
Elsewhere, Angola coach Patrice Beaumelle criticised FIFA’s decision to reduce player release time for the 24 nations participating in Morocco.
Angola, drawn in Group B alongside Egypt, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, had planned a training camp in Portugal from December 8, but under the new directive, players will be released only on December 15.
Beaumelle expressed frustration, saying the decision shows that FIFA “does not value our competitions like AFCON or give them the recognition they deserve.”
