Super Eagles’ central defender, Benjamin Frederick, has been ruled out of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations by a knee injury, which he sustained during a training session with his club on Thursday.

Benjamin was one of the few outstanding players in Nigeria’s ill-fated campaign for qualification to the 2026 World Cup, and will be hugely missed at the continental showpiece.

The Brentford star, who is on loan at Belgium’s Dender FC, has been a regular in Eric Chelle’s side since he made his debut against Jamaica in the Unity Cup early this year.

Fredrick, who is yet to feature for the Bees was sent on loan for the 2025-26 season to gain first-team experience. His form with the Super Eagles has been such that he confined Super Eagles Captain, William Troost-Ekong, to the bench during the last round of the World Cup qualifying series.

The 20-year-old defender was one of the players tipped to make Chelle’s 23-man squad for the Africa Cup of Nations, which kicks off in Morocco next month.

According to reports from Belgium, Fredrick has been ruled out for the rest of the year. He is expected to return to action way after the Africa Cup of Nations, which will run from December 21 to January 18, 2026. Nigeria will play in Group C against Tunisia, Uganda and Tanzania.