AFCON:Chelle Addresses Osimhen-Lookman Spat After Super Eagles’ 4-0 AFCON Win
2 min read
By Sedara Philip
Super Eagles head coach Éric Chelle has described the on-field exchange between Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman during Nigeria’s Round of 16 clash with Mozambique at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations as an internal matter that will be addressed privately within the team.
Nigeria cruised into the quarter-finals with an emphatic 4-0 victory on Monday, thanks to a brace from Osimhen and additional goals from Lookman and Akor Adams.
The result underlined the Super Eagles’ dominance and attacking efficiency on the night.
Despite the convincing scoreline, the match briefly drew attention for a tense moment in the 64th minute. With Nigeria already leading 3-0, Osimhen was seen visibly frustrated as he confronted Lookman inside the Mozambican penalty area.
The striker appeared unhappy that a promising scoring opportunity was not squared to him, believing he was in a better position to convert.
Shortly after the incident, Osimhen signaled to the bench requesting a substitution and was replaced by Moses Simon.
Speaking during his post-match press conference, Chelle declined to go into details about the incident, stressing that it would not affect team unity and would be dealt with behind closed doors.
“This is a question about my management, and what happened on the pitch will stay within the group,” Chelle said. “I don’t need to tell anyone what happened. Everything that happened in the group stays in the group. We will talk and handle it internally.”
Reflecting on the dominant performance, the Super Eagles coach expressed satisfaction with the result but cautioned against complacency as the tournament progresses.
“I’m happy with the victory and the four goals, but in reality we didn’t do anything special we just won one game,” Chelle added. “If we want to be ambitious, we must continue to improve and maintain this level of quality on the pitch.
“My job now is to keep the players very focused on their training sessions and their behaviour.”
Nigeria will now turn attention to the quarter-finals as they continue their pursuit of a fourth Africa Cup of Nations title.
Sedara Philip is a Sports writer, an administrator,Journalist,and editor
