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Slams Team for Celebrating Third-Place Finish
- Safiu Kehinde
Former Super Eagles player, Sunday Oliseh, has attributed the Nigerian national team’s failure to advance to the final of the 2025 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) and win the trophy to the spat between forwards, Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman.
Recall that Osimhen had during the Super Eagles knockout match against Mozambique engaged in heated argument with Lookman over a missed goal scoring opportunity.
While Nigeria had trashed the Black Mambas in 4-0 win with Osimhen scoring a brace, drama ensued before the end of the game as the Galatasaray striker ran towards Lookman, ignoring team’s captain, Wilfred Ndidi, to exchange words with the Atalanta man.
Osimhen could be seen furiously addressing Lookman, raising his fingers at his face before being pulled back by teammates as well some Mozambique players.
The action had sparked mixed reactions from Nigerians with some slamming Osimhen over what they considered as arrogance and assault on a teammate.
Meanwhile, the team would later announce resolution of the clash and went ahead to defeat Algeria in the quarterfinals.
They however crashed-out of the quest for a final showdown as they defeated by host nation, Morocco, in the semi-finals.
While they had went on to win the third-place match against Egypt, Sunday Oliseh however berated the feat as he blamed Osimhen for the team’s failure to reach the final and win the title eventually won by Senegal.
Speaking on his podcast show on Wednesday, Oliseh maintained that Osimhen’s spat with Lookman damaged the team’s chemistry as it demoralised the later who was considered the most dangerous player in the tournament.
“We are confusing talent with license. Victor Osimehn is world class, but talent is not a license to destroy team chemistry. Look at the evidence.
“Since that public outburst against Ademola Lookman, one of our brightest lights became a shadow of himself and we lost the bite.
“When you publicly diminish your teammate, you break their spirit. You destroy the very confidence a team needs to survive the semi-final.
“Against a team as tactically sharp as Morocco, we needed our best players at 100 percent. Statistically, Ademola Lookman was the most dangerous player in the tournament until that public verbal abuse broke his focus.
“You cannot expect a playmaker to perform miracle on the pitch when he has been demoralised by his own teammate.
“The conflict did its damage. We didn’t just lose a game; we lost the psychological edge we needed to win.” Oliseh said.
The former Super Eagles coach further slammed the Nigerian fans sentiment in defending players they considered as stars of the team even when they badly behave and get disciplined.
“What is worse, and frankly what is most dangerous for our football is the fan culture that tolerates this.
“We have reached a point where anybody who dares to point out the truth is immediately attacked or threatened online by a mob of followers.
“We are building a culture of entitlement where the player is treated as a god and the nation is treated as an afterthought.
“When did it become a crime to demand discipline? Scoring goals for Nigeria doesn’t give you a license to disrespect certified legends like Finidi George or Victor Ikpebea.
“It doesn’t give you the right to disrespect coaches or teammates. If goals alone justifies arrogance, what should the legends who actually put Nigeria at the pinnacle of world football like Amokachi, Amuneke, Okocha, Babangida, and myself do?
“Walk on peoples heads? No! We respected the jersey. You realise that victory is temporary but character is permanent.
“Our untouchable star was subbed off three minutes before the most important penalty shootout against Morocco.” He said.
Oliseh finally expressed his discontentment with the Super Eagles celebration of third-place finish as he disclosed how international pundits were mocking the team after the video of the celebration surfaced online before the final match.
“Before the final in Rabat, a video went viral of the Super Eagles celebrating wildly for winning third place against Egypt.
“In the media tribune where I sat, I watched as African and European pundits mocked us. They couldn’t believe it.
“There was a time when the Super Eagles shed tears at second-place because to us, anything but the trophy was a failure.
“Celebrating third place builds a culture of mediocrity.
“We must remember that the decline of our dominance began exactly when we started being content with bronze. If we want to be Africa’s best again, the wild celebration for anything less than gold must stop.” He said.