Oliseh says Eagles players are not top enough

Former Super Eagles captain and coach Sunday Oliseh says the national team is struggling because it lacks top players.

Oliseh, who is known as one of Nigeria’s best midfielders, shared this view in an interview on Play Zone that has been going around on social media. He expressed his embarrassment that many people ignore the real issue with the team.

"The reason why we’re failing makes me embarrassed because people don’t want to talk about it. The reason we’re failing is that the players are not good enough. We don’t have good players," Oliseh said.

He compared the current squad to earlier teams, when Nigerian stars played for Europe’s top clubs. He mentioned Finidi George and himself at Ajax, and Taribo West at Inter Milan, who often played in the Champions League.

Oliseh pointed out that Victor Osimhen is now the only big name. He noted that Galatasaray is a big club, but they are not in one of Europe’s top five leagues.

On the brighter side, Ademola Lookman moved to Atletico Madrid from Atalanta last season. Also, Samuel Chukwueze is back at AC Milan for the 2026/27 season after his loan at Fulham.

These comments come after a tough time for Nigeria. The Super Eagles did not qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. They finished third at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and lost 3-0 to Guinea-Bissau in the 2027 AFCON qualifiers. Nigeria is currently second in Group L with three points, three behind Guinea-Bissau.