It’s past 1 am. I am seated on the couch right here in my apartment in Fez, Morocco, alongside my colleagues, after we have just gotten home from the coverage of the Nigeria v Mozambique Round of 16 tie at the Africa Cup of Nations 2025, and I am really pissed, not me alone, my colleagues too.
Interestingly, Nigeria thrashed Mozambique 4-0, so why should we be pissed? Funny, yeah, but yes, it’s Victor Osimhen that has made that so.
Nigeria beat Mozambique 4-0, courtesy of two goals from Victor Osimhen, one from Ademola Lookman and one from Akor Adams.
In all the beauty of how Nigeria performed, Victor Osimhen is the centre of the conversation, but the conversation is not on the good side. It is about the crazy and disgusting attitude he put up in the game.
Victor Osimhen’s rise to the very top of world football has been nothing short of meteoric. But star power and raw ability are no shield against one truth: bad attitude catches up with you, and Osimhen’s recent behaviour suggests his head might be his worst enemy.
In the 62nd minute, Victor Osimhen put up a shit show and a bad attitude with his short fuse. He yelled at Bruno Onyeamachi for not passing the ball to him, and he took it out of bounds, like he was yelling at a kid who is not a professional football player like himself. It hurt the likes of Ademola Lookman, who was speaking to him; he yelled at him as well and kept touching his head, directing it at Lookman. Ndidi interfered in the scene and still shrugged him off.
The craziest thing about the moment is that Osimhen stopped playing after that incident, he stopped making runs, chasing balls, and he showed so much of uninterest in the game, that he even called to be taken off.
This is disrespcetful, shameful and annoying. Do you say that once you are not interested in playing, you wouldn’t play? and then you now decide when to play or not
The signs of this thing that happened against Mozambique had long been there.
In Nigeria’s run through the 2022 World Cup qualification phase, when Nigeria played against Ghana, he tried a few overhead kicks in the 1-1 draw against Ghana. Nigeria legend Victor Ikpeba called him out for his many attempts. Osimhen made a social media post that subtly dissed Victor Ikpeba.
The most glaring example came mid-2024, when Osimhen engaged in a public feud with then Super Eagles head coach Finidi George. What should have been an internal discussion about fitness, availability and team strategy turned into an explosive social media episode. Instead of calmly addressing perceived criticism about his absence from crucial World Cup qualifiers, Osimhen took to Instagram Live — not to clarify, but to denounce the coach, declare he’d “lost respect” for him, and hurl verbal barbs that many deemed disrespectful.
He didn’t stop there. In the heat of the moment, he uttered statements that drew rebukes from former internationals and pundits, who called his behaviour “irresponsible” and urged him to apologise. Instead of retracting, Osimhen stood his ground and refused to apologise even after Finidi reached out privately — a refusal later confirmed by the ex-coach himself.
Osimhen’s footballing gifts are undeniable. But talent does not grant immunity from the consequences of poor conduct. Clubs and national teams invest millions not just for goals but for players who can lead, inspire and represent their community with dignity.
If Osimhen continues to let his emotions dictate his public interactions and handling of situations, and the shredding of teammates, one thing becomes clear, talent won’t cover up Osimhen’s madness forever.
