Add Nigeria Football: Osimhen, Bassey, Lookman and the Eagles Latest
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Nigeria Football: Osimhen, Bassey, Lookman and the Eagles Latest
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"headline": "Nigeria Football: Osimhen, Bassey, Lookman and the Eagles Latest",
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"description": "Osimhen's Lagos origin story, Bassey's European push, Ajayi's fitness row, Lookman's Bernabeu test, Eagles debutants and Nigeria's World Cup crisis — all in one place.",
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"datePublished": "2026-03-21T08:00:00+01:00",
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Victor Osimhen's Lagos origin story, a fitness row at Hull City, Fulham's European push, a LaLiga relegation battle between Nigerians, three Eagles debutants and a World Cup legal fight that is running out of time.<br>
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Hull City Raises the Alarm Over Ajayi After Nigeria Call-Up
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<br>Hull City manager Sergej Jakirovic has gone on record about his concerns over Semi Ajayi returning from Super Eagles duty in less than full fitness. Jakirovic made clear the risk is real — breaks, travel across continents and hard competitive minutes are the last thing a player in Ajayi's situation needs.<br>
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<br>The Hull defender was included in Eric Chelle's 23-man Eagles squad for the [friendly double-header](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/news/transfer-news/) in Turkey against Iran and Jordan. Jakirovic hasn't blocked the call-up, but his comments carry an undercurrent of concern that Hull will be watching the situation closely. [The complete Hull City reaction is at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/nigerians-abroad/hull-boss-flags-ajayi-fitness-risk-after-eagles-duty/)<br>
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<br>It raises a question Nigerian football keeps bumping into: at what point does a club's duty of care to a player conflict with the national team's need for its best men? Chelle is building a new-look Eagles squad and Ajayi — experienced, dominant in the air, composed under pressure — fits exactly what the coach is trying to construct. But arriving at camp half-fit helps nobody, least of all Nigeria.<br>
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<br>For Eagles supporters [planning](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/football-governance/) to stake this week, Bet9ja's [current Bet9ja promotion](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/sports-betting/bet9ja/bet9ja-promotion-code/) is worth grabbing before the friendlies begin.<br>
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Bassey Says Fulham Are Not Done Yet
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<br>Three games without a win. Four points off a European place. Eight matches left. Calvin Bassey's response to all of that? Fulham are still in it. The Super Eagles defender has been a regular fixture in Silva's back line all season, and when he says the group believes, it [carries](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/stadiums-and-facilities/) some weight.<br>
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<br>The Nigerian credit Silva with maintaining a clear head in the dressing room through the difficult run. They're not free-falling down the table — they're drawing games, not losing them, and the gap to Europe is still [closeable](https://www.garagesale.es/author/nicki43e046/). [The complete Fulham story and Bassey's words are at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/news/bassey-fulham-eye-europe-despite-three-game-winless-run/)<br>
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<br>For Bassey, qualifying for Europe wouldn't just be a team achievement. It would validate a season of hard work and put him back in conversations about the top end of the game.<br>
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Osimhen: From Selling Water in Lagos to Knowing He'd Always Make It
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<br>The Victor Osimhen story starts on the [streets](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/football-law-and-ethics/) of Lagos, where a young boy with no money and no safety net was already certain he'd end up wealthy. Selling water in gridlocked Lagos traffic, hustling for daily income, losing his mother before football had given him any real security — and through all of it, he says, he never doubted the outcome.<br>
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<br>The goals are the product people see. The mindset behind them is the thing that actually explains Osimhen. [His full profile and the story behind the mindset is at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/player-profiles/osimhen-i-knew-id-be-rich-even-without-football/)<br>
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<br>Three legends shaped the player he became: Didier Drogba, Odion Ighalo and John Obi Mikel each gave Osimhen something he carried into his professional career. [Read about the three legends who shaped Osimhen at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/player-profiles/drogba-ighalo-mikel-shaped-my-career-osimhen/) Mikel's gesture on Osimhen's debut day — [physically handing](https://gratisafhalen.be/author/sylviawarbu/) him money when he had none — is the kind of story that tells you more about both men than a highlights reel ever could. [The full story of that debut gesture is at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/news/national/osimhen-reveals-mikel-gave-him-money-on-eagles-debut/)<br>
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<br>Not all his Super Eagles memories are warm, though. In a separate account, Osimhen recalled the night a senior Nigeria player literally shut a hotel door on him — a moment of [rejection](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/womens-football/) from within the camp that stung deeply. [That revealing player profile is available at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/player-profiles/osimhen-the-night-a-senior-eagle-shut-the-door-on-me/) His most recent injury setback is less inspiring: Osimhen flew back to Nigeria with a fractured arm, adding to the physical disruptions that have broken up what should be a dominant season at Galatasaray. [Follow the latest on Osimhen's arm injury at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/injuries/osimhen-flies-home-to-nigeria-with-fractured-arm/)<br>
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<br>Anyone wanting to back Osimhen when he returns can take advantage of [the latest Bet9ja promotion code](https://www.bet9japromotioncode.com.ng/) for new users.<br>
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The Anfield Moment That Said a Lot About Osimhen's Standing
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<br>During Galatasaray's Champions League visit to Anfield, something unexpected happened after the final whistle. Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai and defender [Ibrahima Konate](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/football-events-and-tournaments/) both sought Osimhen out to apologise. It was an unrequested gesture that says more about how European football's elite view Osimhen than any transfer fee or award. [That Anfield story is reported in full at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/nigerians-abroad/osimhen-szoboszlai-konate-apologised-after-anfield/)<br>
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Nigeria's LaLiga Presence Tested in a High-Stakes Relegation Clash
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<br>It doesn't happen often that three Nigerian players end up in a match that could determine whether a Spanish top-flight club drops out of the division. Dele-Bashiru Adams and Chidera Ejuke lined up against Umar Sadiq in a clash that carried real weight for both clubs' seasons. [All the Nigerian LaLiga action and analysis is covered at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/nigerians-abroad/adams-ejuke-vs-sadiq-nigerians-in-laliga-six-pointer/)<br>
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Ademola Lookman Faces His Biggest European Test Yet
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<br>There are tests in football, and then there is the Bernabeu on a big European night. Ademola Lookman faced his first Madrid derby in the Spanish capital — a genuine landmark in the career of one of Serie A's best performers. A player of Lookman's quality should want those nights. How he performs in them is the next chapter of his story. [Read the complete Lookman Bernabeu story at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/nigerians-abroad/lookman-faces-bernabeu-test-in-first-madrid-derby/)<br>
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<br>Anyone keen on staking on the Nigerian contingent in European football can check [today's Bet9ja promo code](https://bet9japromotioncode.ng/bet9ja-promo-code-today) before placing their first wager.<br>
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Three Debutants Named as Super Eagles Camp Opens in Turkey
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<br>Chelle arrived in Turkey with a clear message: he's not just managing the squad he inherited, he's building his own. The identity of the debutants signals where Chelle believes the squad still needs competition and freshness. [The full debutant list and squad news is at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/news/national/chelle-names-three-debutants-as-eagles-camp-in-turkey/)<br>
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<br>One of those debutants, goalkeeper Otele, was handed his first Eagles invitation and declared fit to play ahead of the Dortmund tie. [Read more on Otele's first Eagles call-up at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/nigerians-abroad/otele-fit-for-dortmund-clash-after-first-eagles-call-up/)<br>
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<br>Thirteen players who qualify for Nigeria are coming through England's youth system, and the question of how many eventually commit to the Super Eagles will shape the squad for years to come. [The full list of those 13 players is at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/nigerians-abroad/13-nigeria-eligible-stars-in-england-youth-squads/)<br>
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Italy's Cold Shoulder Could Hand Nigeria a €35m Forward
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<br>Kayode's valuation is serious — €35 million puts him among the more significant transfer targets in [European football](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/category/news/interviews/). And yet Italian clubs have passed. The Super Eagles could benefit directly from Italy's indifference. Chelle needs options in attack, and Kayode at that valuation is not a consolation prize. [Read the complete transfer analysis at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/news/transfer/italy-snub-kayode-giving-super-eagles-a-e35m-opening/)<br>
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Troost-Ekong: I'd Be Ashamed to Win the Way Morocco Did
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<br>Nigeria's skipper said the quiet part out loud: winning the Africa Cup of Nations the way Morocco did would bring him shame, not pride. It sparked debate precisely because it came from an active Super Eagles captain with a stake in the competition — not a pundit talking from the outside. [Troost-Ekong's full comments are at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/news/national/troost-ekong-i-would-feel-ashamed-to-win-like-morocco/)<br>
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One Appeal. One Shot at the 2026 World Cup.
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<br>The NFF's appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against DR Congo remains Nigeria's best remaining route back into the 2026 World Cup qualifying picture. But former NFF figure Boboye has assessed the case and doesn't see it going Nigeria's way. A successful CAS ruling would be a lifeline. An unsuccessful one would end the conversation about Nigeria's presence at the 2026 tournament. [The Boboye governance analysis is at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/football-governance/boboye-nffs-cas-appeal-against-dr-congo-will-fail/) [Nigeria's World Cup destiny is covered in full at FootballInNigeria.com.ng.](https://www.footballinnigeria.com.ng/news/national/nigerias-world-cup-fate-rests-on-nffs-last-appeal/)<br>
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<EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD> Did You Know?
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Victor Osimhen surpassed Rashidi Yekini's all-time Super Eagles scoring record in 2024. Yekini, widely regarded as Nigeria's greatest striker before Osimhen, scored 37 goals for the national team during his career.
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Calvin Bassey was sold by Rangers to Ajax for £23 million in 2022 — one of the largest fees ever paid to a Scottish club at that point — before moving to Fulham the following year.
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Semi Ajayi was born in Lagos but grew up in London and represented England at youth level before switching international allegiance to Nigeria. He made his senior Super Eagles debut in 2019.
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Ademola Lookman scored a hat-trick in the 2024 Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen — one of the most celebrated individual performances in a European final in recent history, and a defining moment in his career.
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Umar Sadiq qualifies to represent Nigeria through his father and Norway through his mother. Despite representing Nigeria at senior level, he spent time in [Italian football](https://gratisafhalen.be/author/jackieferge/) before moving to Spain, making his dual-national journey one of the more complex in recent Eagles history.
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The NFF's CAS dispute with DR Congo stems from Nigeria's AFCON qualifier result in 2025. A successful CAS appeal overturning a confederation match decision is historically very rare, which is why Boboye's assessment carries weight.
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John Obi Mikel captained Nigeria to the 2013 AFCON title in South Africa and earned more than 90 senior caps — making him one of the most decorated players in Super Eagles history and one of the most naturally influential figures in any Nigeria dressing room he ever entered.
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