Osimhen’s indiscipline cost Nigeria AFCON title — Oliseh

By Ayobami Okerinde

Former Super Eagles captain Sunday Oliseh has attributed Nigeria’s failure to win the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco to what he described as indiscipline by Victor Osimhen, warning that individual excesses undermined team unity at a decisive moment.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Oliseh said Osimhen’s public confrontation with teammate Ademola Lookman disrupted the squad’s chemistry and weakened Nigeria’s title challenge.

He pointed to the on-field altercation between the duo during Nigeria’s 4–0 Round of 16 victory over Mozambique, where the Galatasaray striker appeared to angrily rebuke the Atalanta winger for not releasing the ball in a promising attacking situation.

Although Nigeria cruised to the quarter-finals, the incident sparked widespread backlash, with some Nigerians criticising Osimhen’s conduct as unprofessional.

According to Oliseh, the consequences went beyond that single match. He argued that Lookman’s form dipped noticeably after the confrontation, affecting Nigeria’s attacking edge in the semifinal.

He said, “Let’s look at the toxicity that might have cost us the AFCON title.

“We are confusing talent with licence. Victor Osimhen 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, he became a shadow of himself, and we lost our bite.

“When you publicly diminish your teammates, you break their spirit. You destroy the very confidence a team needs to survive a semi-final. Against a team as tactically sharp as Morocco, we needed our best players at 100 per cent.

“Statistically, Ademola Lookman was the most dangerous player in the tournament until that public verbal abuse broke his focus. You can’t expect a playmaker to perform miracles 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 needed to win.”

“What’s worse, and frankly, what’s most dangerous for our football is the fan culture that now tolerates this.”

His criticism extended beyond the AFCON incident, referencing Osimhen’s earlier public attack on former Super Eagles coach Finidi George, describing it as another example of unchecked excess.

While acknowledging Osimhen’s importance to the national team, Oliseh insisted that no player is bigger than the collective.

“Scoring goals for Nigeria doesn’t give you a licence to disrespect certified legends like Finidi George or Victor Ikpeba. It doesn’t give you the right to disrespect your coaches or teammates. If goals alone justified arrogance, what should the legends who put Nigeria at the pinnacle of world football, like Amokachi, Amunike, Okocha, Babangida and myself, do? walk on people’s heads? We respected the jersey; we respected that victory is temporary but character is permanent.

“If we don’t fix the discipline and the administration, there won’t be a Super Eagles left to support.”

He also faulted the celebrations that followed Nigeria’s third-place finish, where the Super Eagles defeated Egypt on penalties after a 0-0 draw during regulation time to claim their ninth AFCON bronze medal.

“There was a time the Super Eagles shed tears at second place, because to us anything but the trophy was a failure; celebrating third place built a culture of mediocrity,” he added.

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