Our focus this week is on a single participant within the Tremendous Eagles’ squad – Victor James Osimhen … and the large query to reply is: Will he rating for Nigeria in opposition to Tunisia in Saturday’s second group match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations?
This query turns into pertinent resulting from the truth that, as prolific as he has been for membership and nation, Osimhen has just one purpose in 9 matches at Africa’s flagship competitors, which implies he’s up in opposition to a jinx of type that forestalls him from scoring in AFCON fixtures.
The jinx reared its ugly head final Tuesday, as Osimhen hit the crossbar and afterward had a purpose struck out for offside. That introduced again recollections of how he had three efforts dominated out by VAR over the last AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire. Probably the most painful of them at the moment needed to be his kamikaze sizzler in opposition to South Africa, which was not solely dominated out however the ball was taken again to Nigeria’s field and a penalty was awarded belatedly for Bafana Bafana, which they scored.
What else could possibly be extra painful than seeing your effort rotated from celebration into lamentation throughout the blink of an eye fixed? That certainly should have damage Osimhen immensely to the bone marrow.
Dramatically, tried as he did in Abidjan, Osimhen may solely muster one purpose in seven video games, whereas his captain, William Troost-Ekong shot into the document books as the very best scoring defender in AFCON historical past with a complete of 5 – three objectives in Cote d’Ivoire (added to 1 every in 2019 and 2021).
That certainly should have been one enormous cause why Osimhen appeared determined to attain final Tuesday in opposition to Tanzania … particularly when he would do not forget that one other former Eagles’ centre again and captain, Stephen Okechukwu Keshi (of blessed reminiscence) netted 4 objectives in his general outings at AFCON.
So, Osimhen would certainly be lamenting why he can’t rating at AFCON, regardless of his prolific standing, whereas defenders hog headlines with objectives.
By the way, Osimhen is lagging far behind Rashidi Yekini’s scoring fests in AFCON historical past, as ‘The Targets Father’ is the competitors’s all-time third highest general web banger with 13 beauties, behind solely Samuel Eto’o of Cameroon and Laurent Pokou of Cote d’Ivoire.
Sarcastically, whereas Osimhen’a 31 objectives general for the Tremendous Eagles put him simply six behind ‘Ye-King’ (37) on the log of Nigeria’s all-time prime finishers, his AFCON statistics fall wanting the same comparability.
So, the query lingers: Why is Osimhen discovering it tough to attain on the Nations Cup? As I took a psychological suss and perused my thoughts for a solution, two believable explanations got here up:
1. He’s too determined to hit the bullseye.
2. African defenders received’t give him the respiratory house he will get whereas taking part in in Europe.
Earlier than I deal with each solutions, let’s give Osimhen one thing from the document books to console him. It’s a startling, beautiful and virtually unbelievable undeniable fact that Nigeria’s legendary former captain and talent monger, Nwankwo Kanu (Papilo) didn’t rating a SINGLE purpose in open play on the Nations Cup, regardless of showing in six editions – 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010). That’s to counsel and luxury Osimhen with the notion that he nonetheless has extra time for him to web AFCON objectives later in his profession (LOL).
Having acknowledged that, let’s have a look at our two believable options to his drawback, the primary of which occurs to be his psyche and assertiveness. This merely means Osimhen ought to cease being ‘over determined’ to attain and he has to let issues circulation naturally.
I bear in mind one factor Emmanuel Amuneke’s former youth coach at Soccer Warriors FC, late Tony Onuoha (aka Chief), used to inform our proteges at Nationwide Grassroots Dream Crew. He would shout, “Don’t power it; simply play regular!’ That’s what Osimhen has to start out doing…
One very modern instance that ought to assist him on this regard is the case of Kylian Mbappe at Actual Madrid of Spain. In his early days at Santiago Bernabeu, Mbappe was so determined to attain that he performed selfishly, rushed at each ball and ended up making clumpsy strikes thar left him annoyed in a number of video games.
Madrid’s gaffer, Carlo Ancellotti clearly helped the French ace loads by being affected person with him and he should have urged the star to observe go well with – Mbappe is now raining objectives one by the dozen for Los Blancos.
That takes us to the second believable resolution to Osimhen’s AFCON blight … and it’s what Tremendous Eagles’ coach, Eric Chelle, seems to have began doing and has to do extra of. It’s about using a inventive but potent tactical method that may, to an extent, take the eye of opposing ‘brutal African defenders’ away from Osimhen.
On this regard, pairing Akor Adams with Osimhen ought to assist the Galatasaray of Turkey hitman, whereas additionally serving three essential benefits to Chelle and his need to make historical past with the Eagles –
1. Offering a decoy that may enable some iota of freedom for Osimhen to make hay.
2. Rising the group’s scoring probabilities with the presence of two strikers up entrance.
3. Including an efficient mix of youth and expertise within the hunt for objectives.
All mentioned, the coach can solely strive his greatest, and we analysts will solely write our ideas, however the process is right down to Osimhen himself to take the bull by the horn. So, that takes us again to choice primary … dont power it.
