Chibuike Nwaiwu named in Super Lig Team of the Week after Trabzonspor win

Nigeria defender Chibuike Nwaiwu has been included in SofaScore’s Super Lig Team of the Week after helping Trabzonspor beat Samsunspor 3-0.

The 23-year-old centre-back received a rating of 8.5, the highest awarded to a defender in the division for the latest round of matches.

Nwaiwu scored his first goal of the season as Trabzonspor secured a clean sheet and all three points at Samsun 19 Mayıs Stadium. He put his side 2-0 ahead in the 38th minute, reacting quickest in the penalty area after the goalkeeper failed to properly deal with Ernest Muci’s effort.

Muci had opened the scoring earlier in the match, while Franculino Dju completed Trabzonspor’s first-half scoring.

Nwaiwu makes defensive impact

Trabzonspor’s defensive display was particularly notable because the visitors played for more than half the match with 10 men. Melih Kabasakal was sent off in the 43rd minute.

Nwaiwu helped restrict Samsunspor’s attacking threat throughout the 90 minutes. He made 15 defensive contributions, won five of his six duels and registered 72 touches during the game.

Only Corum attacker Alexandros Kyziridis, who scored and provided an assist, received a higher SofaScore rating among the players selected. Kyziridis was given 9.4, while Goztepe’s Brazilian forward Andre Henrique earned 9.0 after scoring a hat-trick.

Trabzonspor midfielder Mustafa Eskihellac was also rated above Nwaiwu, receiving 8.6 after registering one assist. The ratings were reported by Le Marca Sports.

Other notable names in the Team of the Week included Trabzonspor goalkeeper Andre Onana, Galatasaray captain Abdulkerim Bardakcı and Amed SK player Dia Saba.

Nwaiwu’s performance came only days after he was left without playing time during Nigeria’s latest 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau.

Although he was selected in Eric Chelle’s Super Eagles squad, Nwaiwu did not play in either fixture. Chelle instead used Calvin Bassey and Semi Ajayi as his centre-back pairing.

Nigeria will resume their AFCON qualifying campaign next month with consecutive matches against Tanzania, co-hosts of the 2027 continental championships.