Super Eagles coach Éric Chelle said that the team’s main striker, Victor Osimhen, played the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations with a hamstring injury.
Even though the Galatasaray striker had some physical problems during the tournament in Morocco, he still stood out as one of the best players, scoring four goals and providing two assists in six matches.
His outstanding performances earned him a spot in the Confederation of African Football’s Team of the Tournament.
Out of the six games Osimhen played in AFCON 2025, he played the full 90 minutes in two matches, both against North African teams Tunisia and Algeria.
Chelle explained that Nigeria did not perform at their best in the semifinal against Morocco due to a demanding travel schedule.
He also mentioned that Osimhen kept playing despite his injury, and the team’s doctors carefully managed his condition.
“After the game against Algeria, which we played in Marrakesh, we travelled back to Fez, then from Fez we went to Rabat, and we played another match just 48 hours later.
“So we didn’t have a cryotherapy chamber with us to recover,” Chelle said on RMC Sport’s After Foot.
“It’s true that the recovery was really tough. We flew from Marrakesh to Rabat, but at this level, it’s really the small details that matter.
“After two training sessions, some rest after the game, and another training session before the next match, the team felt really tired.”
Nigeria’s main attacking players, Alex Iwobi, Osimhen, and Ademola Lookman, struggled to match their earlier performances in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations semifinal against the Atlas Lions.
He added, “If you watch the match, Akor looks really tired; he missed a lot of balls. Victor is complicated because people need to know he played in the Africa Cup of Nations while injured.
“He had a small tear in his hamstring, so it was necessary to take care of it.”
Osimhen, who led Nigeria in their games against Uganda and Morocco, did not play in the third-place playoff against Egypt, even though he was included in the team list for that match.
‘Osimhen played AFCON with hamstring injury – Chelle reveals why Super Eagles failed vs Morocco
