By By Ebenezer Adurokiya
I’ve been a fan of Super Eagles leading striker and Napoli star, Victor Osimhen. I’ve been following his football career right from the build-up to the winning of the Under 17 World Cup with Emmanuel Amunike as coach. The then young lad scored a whopping 10 goals. Since then, I knew he’d emerge as a global star in the near future. And true to my thoughts and prayers, he became African Footballer of the year in 2023 owing to his extraordinary feats at Napoli.
Osimhen is loved by virtually all Nigerians and across the globe. We all saw the awe of love at Naples. I was in sorrow when the news filtered in late December 2021 that he would not feature in the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) due to that injury on his cheekbones. I had prayed he would make it before the start, but lo, he couldn’t. Joyous was I then when he had his chance to join the team for the just concluded 2024 AFCON. Osimhen had all eyes on him being the recently crowned king of football in African soil.
Victor Osimhen
The Esan-born striker had his humble beginnings at the dusty streets of Olusosun in Lagos, Nigeria. He’s not the first. Nigeria’s ever best midfield maestro, JJ Okocha and many others had their share of such nativity stories of grass to grace.
Recent engagements of the man that “have screws that pass through my jaws and face,” being reason for wearing a mask while on the pitch as he once confided in Daily Trust, have betrayed him as impatient, rash, innately immature and pugnaciously arrogant. You didn’t come around to feature for Nigeria against South Africa and Benin Republic owing to injuries, that’s understandable. Exited Coach Finidi George had explained he was excused. And then the matches were bungled both at Uyo and Abidjan – meaning Osimhen who is yet to win AFCON as well as feature in the World Cup might miss the 2026 World Cup finals. A university lecturer with no eye on becoming a professor has no business being in the classroom. What’s the value of a footballer, who has all the money, but couldn’t feature in or win any of major tournaments like the World Cup?
Yes, lanky Osimhen with the height of 1,86 m is worth €100.00m at the transfer market. But it appears the boy isn’t thinking of anything bigger than this. Pity! Could it be village people at work? Is he already as stupendously wealthy as Ronaldo or Messi? Shouldn’t someone tell him he’s ageing already? When would he win AFCON or feature in the World Cup?
Osimhen’s recent outburst against Finidi George delineated him as not only immature but acerbic and arrogant. Observe his mannerisms while featuring on his live video on Instagram. What do you take from it? Acute ignorance and arrant arrogance! It’s obvious he’s unlettered, brash, and lacking in home training the African way. Even if George, his boss, had accused him of lack of commitment, should Osimhen go that far to dress down his far elder in such a manner? But Osimhen is the big boy who earns £1.29m (€1.5m) per month at Napoli! If Esans do not respect age (which is not true), did Osimhen not grow up and hawked in Yoruba land where grey hairs are sacred? How old was 25-year-old Osimhen when Finidi was making waves as one of the best Number 7 in the globe in his days? Were Finidi his biological dad, would he go that far to so disparage a celebrated, all-time Super Eagles winger who could father him?
Read the little lines I gleaned from the Instagram live video:
“I don’t ever anticipate anything, do you understand? I had an injury in the last match that we played and immediately, I went to Germany to see my son and also did an MRI. I have the picture and video because I know things like this will happen. I am not dumb.
“Immediately I did the MRI, the doctor called me and I went to his office to see him. I called Finidi but he was on the phone. I told one of my guys to do a video of me and the doctor speaking to Finidi.
“I don’t address issues, I let people believe what they want to believe. Whether I play for my club or for Nigeria, I play my heart out and I don’t believe what people say. But I won’t allow that disrespect from anybody. I respect people before disrespecting them. I won’t allow that nonsense; don’t put stains on my name!
“I have kept quiet for long and a lot of you don’t want to allow my name to rest. Osimhen this Osimhen that. I don’t care what Finidi said because I will post the video in my story after this. I will post the pictures of the screenshot I did when I was speaking with Finidi.
“You all believe that somebody is keeping quiet because he is playing ball. No soul in this world will tell me how to live my life; nobody.”
Make what you want from the above, for me, the above is laced with pride and nothing more. If truly pride goes before a fall, then Osimhen might just be on his way to damnation and this is too early. Lads with a greater future don’t toe that line – taking ancestors of our football heritage to the cleaners in the public was a low for him.
Take it from me, what may ruin Osimhen are not injuries, but lack of self-control and destiny wasters lurking around him. Where were his advisers before he jumped on Instagram to vomit his bile?
I read a post where Osimhen was accused of also raining down abuses on one of our football legends, Victor Ikpeba not too long. The post gave similar instances of some Super Eagles players who did the same to their predecessors. Read it below:
“I remembered when Victor Osimhen abused Victor Ikpeba, because Ikpeba accused him of wasting the chance he should have scored in the World Cup play off against Ghana. I mentioned in some of the shows I attended that he should be sanctioned and be made to pay a fine and apologize to Ikpeba.
“I was so shocked today, when I saw the video where he was lashing out at Finidi on Instagram, using fowl languages, calling Finidi by name, he didn’t say, Coach Finidi, Uncle Finidi or Mr Finidi, but he called him by name. Such behavior is highly condemnable, and should not go unpunished. Finidi can birth Osimhen, what Finidi achieved in football, Osimhen can never achieve. Finidi helped Nigeria qualify for the World Cup twice and played in the World Cup twice. Osimhen couldn’t help Nigeria qualify for the World Cup and has not played in the World Cup. Finidi won the Champion’s League with Ajax, Osimhen is yet to win it. Finidi is an AFCON winner, Osimhen has not achieved that. Finidi was the best number 7 in his days, Osimhen is not the best number 9, currently. As current African Footballer of the year, he is an ambassador of Africa as a whole, not just Nigeria, therefore someone like him must not be seen with such dirty action.
“Now coming to the matter, Finidi shouldn’t have mentioned name, he should have talked generally, but I understand his frustration. But come to think of it, there is no lie in what Finidi said about Osimhen, since Osimhen has become the team’s number one striker, he has been selecting matches he will play, in the last five years, most of the friendly matches the Super Eagles have played, Osimhen has always opted out, anyone who is doubting should go and research, I stand to be challenged and corrected. He will claim he is injured, but immediately after the friendly, you will see him playing in Napoli.
“We all remember how he colluded with his club to opt out of AFCON 2 years ago, up till today, the reason for opting out is not clear.
“This is always the problem with so many Nigerian players, most especially those that see themselves as the most important players in the team, Austin Okocha and Kanu Nwankwo too were selecting matches they would play in their own time, that is why Nigeria could not qualify for World Cup in 2006, because they were not honouring invitation for qualifiers away from home. I remember when a journalist asked Okocha why he didn’t honour a particular match, he responded by saying he is not a machine.
“Mikel Obi and Victor Moses too did the same thing. I remember Stephen Keshi dealt with Mikel Obi because of that, by not inviting him for close to a year, it was the last qualifying match for 2013 AFCON that he invited him again, and ever since, Mikel did not try that again.
“Obafemi Martins was doing same thing, Nigeria almost not qualify for 2010 World Cup, because Martins and some players were not honouring away matches, that was the reason Amodu Shuaibu wanted to drop him for 2010 AFCON in Angola, if not for the public outcry and the intervention of the NFF, Amodu would have dropped him. Even when they got to Angola, Amodu put him on the bench, and was using Yakubu Ayegbeni, Osaze Odemwingie and Chinedu Obasi upfront, Martin would only come in at the tail end of the match.
“We can go on and on; it’s a problem with our players, they are arrogant, they feel too big, they feel uncontrollable.
“My suggestion is that, henceforth, let there be a code of conduct for every member of the team and the technical crew about dos and donts, that anyone who errs, anyone who does contrary will be made to face sanctions.
“Back to Osimhen, he must be disciplined; he must be banned for sometime from the team and must be made to apologize to Finidi and Ikpeba.”
I align with the author of the above post. NFF should also detail the next coach to assemble players from the local league as possible replacement for our foreign players anytime any of them messes up. It’s unfortunate that the impunity and mediocrity we see in our political landscape have deeply crept into our sporting world. A country with no accountability and sanctions for infractions and rewards for hardwork, has no business in the comity of sane countries.
Finally on Osimhen, his further greatness will be terribly impeded if discipline and humility do not find a place in his pastimes. He should go learn how to manage success. He should hire psychotherapists to help with his emotional intelligence. With more of brawn than brain, he appears too inadequate in capacity for his achievements, so far. Will it be too much for him to acquire more education, even adult education?
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