The Super Falcons of Nigeria have suffered an injury setback ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics, as midfielder Halimatu Ayinde has been forced to withdraw from Randy Waldrum’s squad due to a knee injury.
Ayinde, who currently plies her trade with Rosengard FC in Sweden, was named in Nigeria’s 18-woman squad announced by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on Wednesday, but the midfielder picked up the knee injury during her club’s training session on Thursday.
“Halimatu Ayinde injured her knee during training and will miss the Olympics. We wish her a speedy recovery,” Rosengard said in a statement via their X (formerly Twitter) account.
The 29-year-old has been a key figure in Nigeria’s squad following her debut in 2015. She was included in the Falcons’ 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup squad and was part of the team that won the 2014 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON).
Waldrum is expected to call a replacement from the standby players that include Gift Monday, Ifeoma Onumonu, Jumoke Alani, and Morufat Ademola.
The nine-time African champions will depart Abuja for Sevilla, Spain, on Thursday night for a two-week training camp, before leaving for France on Thursday, July 18.
This is the Falcons’ first appearance at the Olympics since 2008, and they’ve been drawn in Group D where they’ll face Brazil, Spain, and Japan on July 25, 28, and 31 respectively in the tournament’s group stage.
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