Former Nigeria captain Sunday Oliseh has urged the Super Eagles to reduce their dependence on Victor Osimhen, warning that an injury to the Galatasaray striker could derail the team’s 2026 World Cup hopes.

Osimhen scored a hat-trick against Benin Republic in Nigeria’s final qualifier to secure a playoff spot, but Oliseh believes the Super Eagles must learn to win without their talisman.

Speaking on Penalty Spot with Toyo, the former Borussia Dortmund and Juventus midfielder said:

“To start with, play-offs are not like other kinds of games; it’s a one-off game. So that means you don’t go into a play-off trying to be the one who scores the most.

Instead, you go into play-offs trying to be the team that conceded the fewest goals. This means it’s one game after the other.”

Oliseh, who helped Nigeria qualify for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, added that defensive discipline should be the team’s top priority.

“These are the games where we score one or two goals and close the door. Our priority now should be consolidating our defence line because now we’re playing like the FA Cup – one game after another.”

The 51-year-old also warned against the psychological impact of overreliance on Osimhen.

“Since Osimhen is extremely important for us, we cannot afford as a nation to build our World Cup campaign and say if one player isn’t there, we won’t go ahead.

Osimhen scored one goal in the last AFCON, and we got to the final. So, we have to find a solution to this. We don’t want the players to listen to this and hear that an Osimhen injury means their chances of qualification are gone. They should also believe in themselves, and that’s from a nationalistic point of view.”

Victor Osimehn after picking up the knock that ultimately rules him out of the crucial clash with South Africa. Photo Credit: The Athletic Images

However, Oliseh acknowledged the forward’s crucial role as Nigeria prepared to face Gabon in Morocco on 13 November.

“However, to be realistic, if Osimhen gets injured, we are in trouble. That’s what I can say now because we are playing against Gabon in the first game.

Gabon is coming at Nigeria with one of the most experienced and talented, and sometimes underrated players in the history of Africa. I’m speaking of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. We need our own general [Osimhen] to be in that game as well.”

He concluded by underlining Osimhen’s leadership within the squad:

“At the moment, say what you like, Osimhen is the general of this Super Eagles team. So, we need him to be fit and not injured.