Nigeria vs Benin: Osimhen silences his critics, but Super Eagles have themselves to blame

Victor Osimhen’s superb hat-trick helped Nigeria to keep their World Cup hopes alive, as they thrashed Gernot Rohr’s Benin Republic 4-0 in their World Cup qualifier in Uyo on Tuesday evening. 

Going into the game, the Super Eagles needed to win convincingly to keep their qualification hopes alive, and they did just that. 

However, it would not have been possible without the magnificent display from Osimhen, who deservedly grabbed the headlines. 

The Galatasaray star was the major talking point before and after the game, but there were some other highlights. Here are some of the things we learnt from the game.

Coming into the game, there was massive pressure on Victor Osimhen to perform, even though it never made sense. 

The Galatasaray forward was the subject of ridicule on X, formerly known as Twitter. A lot of X users were ready to pile on him after the game. 

However, Osimhen took up the challenge and silenced his critics with two well-taken goals. In fairness, he is not the reason why the Super Eagles found themselves in this position, but because of his perceived arrogant attitude, fans were ready to put all the blame on him. 

But what followed was a performance for ages from the ex-Napoli man. He set the tone and calmed nerves by putting Nigeria ahead in the second minute with a brilliant finish. 

Then, just before the break, he doubled the advantage with a fantastic header following another brilliant cross from Samuel Chukuwueze. 

Osimhen then capped off a brilliant display with another header in the second half to complete his hat-trick. 

Although his goals were not enough to help Nigeria qualify automatically, he still silenced his trolls and critics by letting them know that he is still the Super Eagles' main guy. 

In fact, Osimhen is the reason why Nigeria went into the game against Benin with a chance to qualify. 

He missed the disappointing draws against Lesotho and Zimbabwe in Nigeria’s first two games of the qualifying campaign. 

However, he still managed to finish as the team’s top scorer. He has seven goal contributions (six goals, one assist) in Nigeria’s last four qualifiers, which was basically the time when the Super Eagles' campaign came to life. 

You may not like Osimhen, but you now have to respect him after this display against Benin. 

Yes, the Super Eagles finally showed their quality in a game they had to win. But despite the win, they only have themselves to blame. 

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has its faults, but the players should also take some responsibility. 

Regardless of who the coach is, the players had no excuse for not beating Lesotho in their opening game and Zimbabwe away from home in their second game. 

The final straw, however, had to be the draw against Zimbabwe at home. The three-time African champions would not have found themselves in this situation if they had beaten Zimbabwe in March. 

It was a wasted opportunity that cost them top place. The good news for them, though, is that they have another chance in the playoffs. 

Although the players need to take responsibility, the bulk of the blame should go to the NFF. The body messed up this qualification from the start. 

The managerial changes during the qualifying campaign showed that the organisation had no idea of what they were doing. 

The Super Eagles went through four managerial changes during this qualifying campaign alone, which is not ideal for the team. 

Aside from that, the NFF’s failure to protest the decision to allow South Africa to play seven out of their ten games at home shows again that the organisation is incompetent. 

Irrespective of what happens in the playoffs, this qualifying campaign has shown that the current NFF board has to go. 

Chelle still has a few things to work on, but this result has at least taken some pressure off him. He was brought in to revive Nigeria’s World Cup fortunes, and has managed to do that, even though there is still work to do. 

His tactics leave much to be desired, but coaches are judged based on results. So far, he has done well. 

However, he faces his biggest challenge yet in the next two months as the Super Eagles enter the playoffs and the Africa Cup of Nations.