Semi Ajayi will now miss Nigeria’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying clashes against Rwanda and South Africa in September due to a hamstring injury.
The centre-back picked up the injury during Hull City’s Sky Bet Championship fixture against Coventry City last weekend. Initially absent from their Carabao Cup tie at Wrexham United as a precaution, scans have since confirmed further damage. He is expected to be sidelined for four to six weeks.
At 31, Ajayi has struggled with recurrence of this injury; he was sidelined twice by hamstring issues last season. He made just 15 appearances for West Bromwich Albion in his final year at the Midlands club.
Nigeria faces Rwanda at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium on Saturday, 6 September, before a trip to South Africa three days later at the Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein.
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Editorial
We believe this setback brings into sharp focus the fragility of momentum in football. Ajayi’s absence leaves a gap in experience and defensive solidity at a time when the Super Eagles need both dearly. His career has been marked by resilience forcing his way back from repeated hamstring issues yet, here we stand again, grappling with the recurrence.
We sense the burden falls on the coaching staff now more than ever: to recalibrate, to rally, and to reconfigure a defence without one of its pillars. This is a moment for other centre-backs to emerge whether familiar faces like Olisa Ndah or Gabriel Osho, or less heralded names—to rise and shoulder the weight of expectation.
We feel the urgency across the camp. A campaign marred by inefficiencies at the back stands to derail a qualification push that demands calm, cohesion and unwavering concentration. We remain convinced: football is resilient, and with it, so must be the Super Eagles. What matters most now is how they respond not to absence, but to adversity.
Did You Know?
- Semi Ajayi has 38 caps for Nigeria, earning his first appearance in 2018 and scoring his lone international goal in a 2026 World Cup qualifier on 18 November 2023.
- Last season’s hamstring ailment wasn’t isolated Ajayi suffered multiple episodes, limiting him to only 15 appearances for West Brom during the 2024–25 campaign.
- At Hull City, where he joined in 2025, he had just one Championship appearance before the current injury struck—underscoring how newly arrived players can be hit hardest by ill-timed setbacks.
- Ajayi has a track record of reliability when fit during his 2020–21 Premier League season with West Brom, he featured in 33 matches, helping anchor the backline .
- The upcoming qualifiers will take place in distinct but challenging settings indoors in Uyo with Rwanda and at altitude in Bloemfontein a test of tactical flexibility for any replacement.
