Former Super Eagles captain slams NFF over brutal 2010 FIFA World Cup snub — 'I captained 250million people!'

Former Nigeria international Seyi Olofinjana has opened up on one of the most painful chapters of his career, revealing the heart-wrenching silence that accompanied his brutal omission from the 2010 FIFA World Cup squad in South Africa.

Despite wearing the green and white jersey with immense pride over a decorated decade, the former Wolverhampton Wanderers and Hull City midfielder, who also has the highest coaching qualification from UEFA, admitted that his sudden, unexplained exile right before the global showpiece left a bitter stain on his national team legacy.

Olofinjana was an absolute pillar for the Super Eagles throughout the entire qualification campaign for South Africa 2010, even wearing the captain's armband for multiple crucial fixtures. 

However, when the final tournament squad was drawn up, his name was shockingly absent, without so much as a courtesy word from technical staff or federation officials.

Speaking emotionally on PlayZoneee, the 48-cap midfield general didn't hide his disappointment at how the situation was handled:

"2010 would have been my World Cup. Played all the qualifiers, as a matter of fact, I captained half of it. And up till tomorrow, nobody's told me why I wasn't selected. Not one person. I didn't get one phone call from anybody. Not players, not staff. Not one phone call."

Refusing to chase down answers at the time, the former Kwara United man pointed to a deeper issue within Nigerian football management.

"Why should I ask? It goes back to the culture. If a person that is considered good enough to captain a whole 250 million people just gets dropped, I won't ask questions. There's no God-given right for anybody to be selected... but there should have been an explanation. Every single time I wore the colours of Nigeria, I wore it with pride."

Checking Olofinjana’s Super Eagles career highlights just how crucial he was to the national team setup throughout the 2000s.

Making his debut back in June 2000 in a 4-1 thrashing of Malawi, Olofinjana went on to earn 48 official caps over an 11-year international career, acting as the disciplined defensive anchor that allowed creative talents like Jay-Jay Okocha to flourish.

2004 AFCON (Tunisia): Core starter in midfield, securing a Bronze medal.

• 2006 AFCON (Egypt): Cruelly missed out due to a severe back injury while at Wolves.

• 2008 AFCON (Ghana): Key midfield presence as Nigeria reached the quarter-finals.

• 2010 AFCON (Angola): Played a vital role in helping the team secure another podium finish.

Despite missing out on the 2010 World Cup main event, Olofinjana returned to serve his country, eventually earning his final cap in March 2011 during a 3-0 victory over Kenya. 

While he insists he is ‘too blessed to complain,’ the total ghosting of a former national team captain remains a dark mark on the federation's history.