Blackburn's Alebiosu Withdrawn at Half-Time Against Millwall Due to Illness

Nigeria defender Ryan Alebiosu was taken off at half-time during Blackburn Rovers' Championship win over Millwall at Ewood Park on Saturday, adding him to a growing list of injury concerns for the Super Eagles.

The right-back had put in another strong first-half display before being replaced at the break by deadline-day signing Gady Beyuku. Alebiosu had started as a near-certain pick under Tony Mowbray, who had said only days earlier that the Nigerian would stay in his usual right-back role rather than shift to right-wing to fit Beyuku into the side.

Speaking after the match on BBC Radio Lancashire, Mowbray said the withdrawal was down to illness rather than a fresh injury.

"Ryan is more illness than injury," Mowbray said. "The defender had complained about the issue earlier in the week, which could be tonsillitis."

Mowbray explained that Alebiosu had been struggling with the issue for several days leading up to the game and had been doing recovery work in training rather than taking full part.

"It's the physicality of the games over the last week that have caught him out," Mowbray said. "I am not 100% sure but he was in the physio game, who came to see me."

The news comes at a difficult time for Nigeria coach Eric Chelle, who already has a lengthy injury list to deal with ahead of the Super Eagles' opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau this month.

Victor Osimhen is out with a groin injury picked up in Galatasaray's win over Basaksehir, with the club describing it as a "moderate to advanced level strain with bleeding in the right groin area" that will keep him sidelined until after the international break. Brighton's Zadok Yohanna has also been ruled out until after the break as the club manages his transition to the Premier League.

Marseille's Tochukwu Nnadi, who is delaying surgery on a suspected ACL injury, is also out of contention, while Fisayo Dele-Bashiru, Umar Sadiq and Zaidu Sanusi remain on the injury list too.

Alebiosu's illness is not expected to be a long-term issue, given that tonsillitis typically clears up within days. Even so, he will need to be fully recovered before he can join up with the Nigeria squad for either qualifier.

Should he not be available, Chelle's other options at right-back include Nottingham Forest's Ola Aina, Birmingham City's Bright Osayi-Samuel and Banik Ostrava's Abdullahi Bewene.

Nigeria open their 2027 AFCON qualifying campaign against Madagascar in Uyo on September 25, before travelling to face Guinea-Bissau four days later.

While Alebiosu's setback looks manageable, the wider injury situation gives Chelle a chance to hand opportunities to other players hoping to stake a claim for a place in the national team.