Former Super Eagles captain, Sunday Oliseh, has blamed Victor Osimhen for Nigeria’s failure to win the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, citing the striker’s role in disrupting team unity during the tournament.
Nigeria settled for a bronze medal after losing to hosts Morocco in the semi-finals.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Oliseh pointed to Osimhen’s public altercation with Ademola Lookman as a key moment that negatively affected the team. The incident occurred during Nigeria’s 4-0 victory over Mozambique in the Round of 16, when Osimhen openly berated Lookman for not passing to him in a clear scoring position.
According to Oliseh, the outburst had lasting consequences on the squad’s chemistry.
“Let’s look at the toxicity that might have cost us the AFCON title,” Oliseh said. “We are confusing talent with permission. Victor Osimhen is world class, but talent doesn’t give you the right to break team chemistry.”
He argued that Lookman, who had been one of Nigeria’s standout performers, struggled to rediscover his form after the confrontation.
“Since that public outburst against Ademola Lookman, one of our brightest players, he became a shadow of himself and we lost our edge,” Oliseh stated.
Oliseh added that publicly disrespecting a teammate damages confidence and weakens the collective spirit needed to win crucial matches, especially against tactically strong opponents like Morocco.
“Statistically, Ademola Lookman was the most dangerous player in the tournament until that verbal attack broke his focus,” he said. “You can’t expect a playmaker to perform miracles when he’s been demoralized by his own teammate.”
The former coach concluded that the fallout from the incident went beyond a single match.
“The conflict did its damage. We didn’t just lose a game, we lost the mental edge needed to win,” Oliseh added, also expressing concern about a fan culture that appears to excuse such behaviour.
