Former Super Eagles captain Sunday Oliseh has stressed that the disorganisation of the team ahead of the 2002 World Cup was the beginning of the fall of the national football team.
Speaking on ‘Oliseh’s Global Football Insights’ podcast, Oliseh and another former international Yakubu Aiyegbeni opened up about their experiences with the Super Eagles in a candid and emotional conversation.
Oliseh, who captained Nigeria during its golden years, did not mince words about the decline of the national team. “There was no handover — that was where the destruction of the Super Eagles started,” he said, recalling the disorganised transition that marred Nigeria’s preparations for the 2002 World Cup.
For him, the betrayal of players who fought through qualifiers only to be excluded from the final squad was emblematic of the leadership vacuum in Nigerian football.
Yak, meanwhile, focused more on the personal highs and lows of his career. He narrated how his iconic dance celebration was born out of a playful suggestion from Steven Pienaar, his teammate during his time at Everton, and how it became part of his identity on the pitch.
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Yet, the pain of his missed chance at the 2010 World Cup still lingers. “In my head, I thought I had scored… but I didn’t hit it properly,” he recalled. Yak also described how the miss left him empty despite his family’s support from the stands.
“… not good enough”
Both legends agreed that the present-day Super Eagles lack the grit and creativity of their era. Oliseh criticised the structural problems, from administrative lapses to lack of accountability.
“In all departments, we are not good enough,” he said.
Yak added his own perspective, lamenting the absence of creative midfielders: “We have a lot of defensive midfielders… if I happened to play in the era of this Super Eagles, I would struggle to score goals.”
Yet, there were also moments of pride. Oliseh relived his 1998 World Cup strike against Spain and his assist to Amunike in the 1994 AFCON final, while Yak spoke glowingly of his exploit in Mali 2002 and his first World Cup appearance in 2010.
The conversation between the two men was more than a trip down memory lane; it was a sobering reminder of how Nigeria has often failed to build on its rich football heritage. Their words reveal both the pride of having represented the Super Eagles and the frustration of watching the team drift.
If there was one overarching theme, it was this: Nigeria must rediscover not just its talent but also its discipline, creativity, and vision. Otherwise, as Oliseh warned, the national team will remain a reflection of the country’s broader struggles.
Tags: Sunday Oliseh, Yakubu Aiyegbeni, Super Eagles, #SoarSuperEagles, Oliseh’s global football insights.
