Former Nigeria international Yakubu Aiyegbeni has said he would struggle to score goals in this current Super Eagles team.
Speaking as a guest on a podcast on YouTube by legendary midfielder Sunday Oliseh, Aiyegbeni explained the reason the current Super Eagles struggle to create and also score goals.
“When we look at the team, we have too many defensive midfielders,” Aiyegbeni said while commenting on the team’s struggles in the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
“We don’t have a creative midfielder. If I play in this team, I’ll struggle to score goals. I’m telling you because when you look at Osimhen when he plays, he’s fighting because he knows already.
“We don’t have a midfielder who can pass the ball. We always pass the ball sideways. We cannot string six passes or seven passes. When we pass the ball a bit, then we kick it long. We cannot build a team like this.”
Also Read: 2026 WCQ: FIFA Opens Case Against South Africa Over Mokoena Eligibility
After eight matches played in Group C of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Super Eagles have scored nine goals and conceded seven with a goal difference of plus two.
Group leaders Bafana Bafana of South Africa have scored 14 goals and have conceded six and have a goals difference of plus eight.
Second places Cheetahs of Benin Republic have plus four goals difference, having scored 11 and let in seven.
The only game the Super Eagles have managed to scored more than one goal was in the 2-0 win against Rwanda in March, thanks to a Victor Osimhen brace.
Hopefully, the Eagies would score more goals in their next two fixtures against Lesotho and Benin Republic in October because there is the possibility it would be a key decider at the end of the qualifying campaign.
By James Agberebi
12 Comments
But during your time you missed open net
This where people will always criticize players like iwobi, even if they pass side way, the chukweze and Simon of this world are nothing to write home about.
May these present set of se players never happen to us again.
What is the essence of having good strikers without good passers of ball to them.
We are still missing Mikel, okocha, onanzi cos this Ndidi to me is a below average player just bunch of pretenders.
My perception exactly. No players in the mould of Okocha, Oliseh, Mikel, etc, who can thread incisive passes and open up stubborn defenses.
Just check how SA scored against us. See that telegraphic pass? How many current SE players can do that? Iwobi even tries and is currently the most creative. Same for Dele-Bshiru. Defensively, I’ll pick solid Onyedika and hardworking Onyeka ahead of lazy Ndidi every single time.
You see, Ndidi, as far as I’m concerned, he’s often a minus one. He occasionally stops balls, but SA players made mincemeat of him, winning every second ball off him. In that match, the midfield looked porous after he was yanked off cos Chelle was looking for goals and brought in strikers in his stead. Of course, we then created more chances to score, even though the midfield became thinner with fewer personnel.
In the match against Zimbabwe, he was directly responsible for the equalizer before it got to Ekong. He was practically escorting the player to the goal post, jogging along, and could not run or tackle like Osayi would have done. That was after squandering an open net opportunity minutes earlier, which anyone could have scored.
At least, Onyedika has bullets in his boots and scores, and Onyeka is a workaholic. Ndidi is about the only SE player who has never scored a goal. That’s how lazy and average he is.
I have said this after the game against south Africa; our midfield is too dull and non creative. Iwobi is too slow for a no 10 though i dont know his actual role in the SE midfield setup. Ndidi lack that final pass from deep that will fine the striker facing the keeper..Also he cannot shot from outside direct to post. We need to fix it as soon as possible..
Spot on Mr Yak!!
Our football na from wings(side ways) and it’s becoming too predictable for other teams ..
Omo I want to be seeing direct passes…true passes from the midfield straight to the point man and from the point man to the net ….that’s where a creative, Sharp vision fabregass iniesta midfielder comes in …ha! God help us o to get there
We have been on this for years. Yet, if not for injuries, we would have still had the same lineup as we had this month in next months qualifiers.
Benin Republic had 4 different scorers in their last match from “awkward” positions.
We are afraid to bench “senior men” and when we do, the replacements most probably are “cautioned” to “never outshine your master” or they will not be given quality balls.
9 goals in 8 “90 minutes” games is too poor a return for the so-called “star studded” Eagles.
How dare we try to alter our centre lol.
After the hopeful failure next month (God no dey forbid bad thing), we might finally take a hard look at our team for a real overhaul.
Goals scored want to bite us hard. Now imagine if Lesotho play 11-0-0 next month coupled with Benin Republic unpredictability with goal scorers?
We don too respect names in the team for far too long. Ball carriers no get godfathers to propel them since, na why we dey do the same thing and expect a different result.
Afcon 2025 suppose end some people national team career sha because 2030 will make them too old by then to star (whether genuine or football age).
You no wonder why our feeder teams no dey produce successors for these Eagles when we for don blend them as they young?
Peserio even was “remarkable” with this team at the last Afcon. Some said he stifled their creativity. He saved us disgrace and papered over our endemic cracks.
It is well.
It is well o my brother sly…
Yes, Yakubu is making a valid point. There is just no creative player in the SE midfield and that’s one of the reasons our attack is blunt when Osimhen is not playing. Too many sideways and pack passes by a midfield of Ndidi, who can’t score a single goal in over 10 years of playing for the SE. Some players need to be retired from the SE, and younger, fitter, pacier and energetic players replace them.
“Feed de Yak and he wii score”- correct talk Mr Aiyegbeni “the Yak” – that is de song dey use to sing when Yakubu is on de pitch, “feed de Yak and he wii score”
This mumu NFF of Nigreain needed to be disban and let pipo like de Yak, Mikel, Okocha start running de NFF – anotherwise de Supa Chicken , I mean Eagle is deader dan a dead tings lmaaoo. Nonsense!
De Supa Eagels doesn’t has a good players, apart from 1 or 2 good striker/forward, and 2 or 3 good defender, all de rest is condemed playere, no midfield or wingers at all at all rara ne, when de NFF haf good knowledgeble pipo but in sharge only den wii tings moved forward – right na ehn dem just dey whine lmaaoo. Robbish!
With reports these days I dont know if anything is true. Gyan said osimhen faked his injury then someone said gyan said it was fake.
Onyedika has been consistently rated high both in Belgium and champions league. He even scored today against Monaco. Yet our own coach and assistant coaches put him on the bench for both matches that were important. I thought after the Russian friendly he had played himself into the starting lineup. I didn’t know our coaches were blind.
You might not know the manipulation in the camp against Onyedika. If they refuse to pass to him, what will he do. CHELLE has started the long overdue revival of that team by bringing Fredericks. We have been recycling rubbish. CHELLE na man.
One more powerful minus and plus in the midfield is next. Good riddance.