AFCON 2025: You are not bigger than your teammates — Okocha reminds Osimhen

Super Eagles legend JJ Okocha has weighed in on the on-pitch argument which broke out between Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman during the round of 16 clash against Mozambique, after the Galatasaray ace berated his teammates for failing to pass the ball.

The 1994 AFCON winner criticised Osimhen's action, stating that it was over the top. However, he noted that it was a positive sign, as it showed passion, hunger and desire.

The former Bolton star was recently a guest on the Clutch 9 podcast, where he discussed a myriad of footballing topics, including his career, his relationship with Ronaldinho at PSG, Arsenal's Mikel Arteta, and, unavoidably, the Super Eagles at the AFCON.

The host asked him about the fracas that broke out between Nigerian players during the clash against Mozambique and whether it was due to the pressurised environment of an AFCON knockout stage, and he answered in the negative, explaining that heated moments like that were quite common in football.

“These things happen, you know, and I love to see that sometimes in a team; it shows that they want to win,” Okocha said.

You know, they're not just there to play and go home, you know; they want to achieve something and if players are criticising each other, if players are upset for not getting the right service or their teammate not doing the right thing, yes, I mean, Osimhen went over the board, you know, and I have to clear that out as well, you know.

“But it's good to see players that are passionate. But also understand that you're not bigger than your teammate; you're the same. You have to respect your teammates. And I mean, if you want to say something, you better say it in the dressing room.

“I'm not sure the, the whole world, you know, that, oh, my colleague made a mistake, you know, I, that I don't like, you know, but of course it's always good also to see that players have, yeah, have got passion.”

Despite the fallout from the incident and fears that it might sow a seed of discord in the dressing room, the Super Eagles players roused themselves, and in the following game against Algeria, they battered the Desert Foxes despite the 2-0 scoreline suggesting a close game.

Interestingly, Osimhen was the standout player of the match, scoring the opener and assisting Akor Adams' comfort goal to help the Super Eagles secure a semi-final matchup against Morocco.