Sunday Oliseh has sent out a strong warning to Nigerian football, saying the Super Eagles could be walking into the same trap that once left fans heartbroken, Footynaija.com reports.
Nigeria’s fight for a 2026 World Cup ticket is already looking shaky, with the team playing catch-up behind South Africa and Benin Republic in the qualifiers.
The heat turned up recently when the NFF publicly singled out Cyriel Dessers, a move that has sparked reactions from fans and former players.
Oliseh, who captained the Eagles during the early 2000s, says the situation feels too familiar. He remembers how off-field drama and poor leadership led to Nigeria’s disastrous 2002 outing and later cost them a place at the 2006 World Cup.
“They are shifting the blame away from the management and putting it on the players,” Oliseh said on his YouTube channel via Afrik-Foot.
The former Juventus and Borussia Dortmund man did not stop there.
“They attack these players and the Super Eagles, none of them have said anything. This is exactly what destroyed the Super Eagles in 2002. We didn’t learn, and that was why in 2006 we failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in almost 20 years,” he added.
Oliseh’s words hit at a tense moment. The 1-1 draw against South Africa in Bloemfontein already had fans grumbling, and although Calvin Bassey’s goal saved a point, the bigger concern is whether Nigeria can still pull off qualification.
With memories of past failures still fresh, Oliseh is urging the system to take responsibility before history repeats itself. For him, the Eagles’ talent is not the problem. It is the culture of shifting blame that could once again deny Nigeria a place on the world’s biggest stage.
You’ve built a lot of trust through your consistency.