Niang Backs Bassey to Lead Nigeria’s Defence at AFCON

Marseille icon Mamadou Niang has endorsed Calvin Bassey as the ideal successor to William Troost-Ekong ahead of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations. Troost-Ekong, who was the 2023 Afcon Player of the Tournament, stunned fans last week by announcing his international retirement after Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

Although he was named in the provisional Afcon squad, he had already fallen behind rising defender Benjamin Fredrick in Eric Chelle’s plans. Bassey, however, has become a key figure for Nigeria and Fulham, playing every minute of the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.

Speaking on Canal+, Niang said the centre-back’s Premier League form shows he is “a talented, tough defender… with very good distribution” and “more than capable” of replacing Troost-Ekong. Bassey also impressed at Afcon 2023, helping Stanley Nwabali secure four straight clean sheets.