Wolverhampton Wanderers goalkeeper Carl Ikeme did not travel with the rest of the Super Eagles squad to Egypt as the team’s chartered flight was delayed for more than two hours so as to get an airspace clearance.
On Sunday, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announced Ikeme was suffering from a stomach upset which stopped him from training and as such he has been ruled out of Tuesday’s AFCON rematch against Egypt in Alexandria.
Ikeme has been Eagles first-choice goalkeeper since September after Lille star Vincent Enyeama retired from international football after a major falling out with former coach Sunday Oliseh.
South Africa-based Daniel Akpeyi is now expected to be between the posts on Tuesday with Sunshine Stars shot stopper Ikechukwu Ezenwa his cover.
In the meantime, the Eagles departure to Egypt was held back for almost two hours as the chartered Arik Air flight sought clearance to fly across the air space of Sudan.
The Eagles are expected to have a feel of the pitch at the Borg El-Arab Stadium in Alexandria later today.