Nigerian striker Sadiq Umar left the AFCON camp on January 11, 2024, two days to the tournament's kick-off in Côte d'Ivoire. / Photo: Real Sociedad   

Nigeria's Umar Sadiq, who left the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) due to injury, has been listed in the squad of Spanish club Real Sociedad ahead of the club's Copa del Rey round of 16 match against Osasuna on Wednesday.

Sadiq was ruled out of the AFCON squad on January 11 after picking up a knee injury during Nigeria's 2-0 loss against Guinea in a friendly match on January 8.

The striker, thereafter, left the AFCON camp and returned to Real Sociedad for further diagnosis and treatment.

On Tuesday, the Spanish side released information about its squad that will play against Osasuna on Wednesday, and Sadiq was among those listed.

'Meticulous medical procedures'

The status of his injury remains unclear, though for him to feature in Real Sociedad's squad, it means that he has been given a clean bill of health.

The Nigeria Football Federation had earlier Tuesday said in a statement that Sadiq was withdrawn from the AFCON squad after "meticulous medical procedures" revealed that he could not play in the tournament due to injury.

In the 2023/2024 season, the 26-year-old scored three goals in six club matches, while this season, he has scored two goals so far.

Sadiq signed for Real Sociedad from Spanish side Almeria in September 2022.

Olympic bronze medal

The striker previously represented Nigeria's under-23 team, and was part of the squad that won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Nigeria, who are in Group A, were held to a 1-1 draw by Equatorial Guinea in their opening 2023 AFCON match on Sunday.

In the group, Nigeria will also face off against the hosts Côte d'Ivoire and Guinea-Bissau.

In their opening match on Saturday, Côte d'Ivoire beat Guinea-Bissau 2-0.

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TRT Afrika