Nigeria’s Sports Minister Speaks On Osimhen’s Outburst

Nigeria’s sports minister, John Enoh, has responded for the first time to Napoli striker Victor Osimhen’s social media outburst against former Super Eagles coach Finidi George.

Earlier this month, Finidi George was accused of questioning Osimhen’s loyalty to the group after he skipped the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against South Africa and the Benin Republic.

Finidi was accused of criticising some players’ commitment before singling out Osimhen for his inability to participate.

He was quoted as saying he couldn’t ask Osimhen to participate for the national team after the player pulled out of their last two 2026 World Cup qualifiers due to an injury.

In response to the comments attributed to Finidi, Osimhen stated he approached Finidi about his condition and wanted to fly down to be with the players in camp, but the former coach declined.

He said, “I knew things like these would happen and that’s why I have the videos and screenshots of when I called Finidi while I was with the doctor in Germany.

“I got injured in our (Napoli’s) last game against Lecce and I went to the MRI scan. And I called Finidi there for him to listen to the doctor too.

“I asked Finidi George to allow me to stay with the players in the camp, but Finidi asked me not to bother and that I should stay with my family.

“I’m not addressing anything, everybody knows I play my heart out whenever I’m playing for the club or national team. I’ll share the screenshot and videos of my conversation with Finidi for the sake of those believing what Finidi said.

“I’ve lost respect for that man because before I disrespect anybody, I always respect them.”.

Since the explosion, Osimhen has refused to apologise, even after Finidi denied making such comments about him.

Speaking with Eagle7 FM Radio, the Sports Minister addressed the outburst at the moment, stating that he has directed the NFF not to make a statement on the topic until they hear from Osimhen.

“There has been a plethora of opinions on this,” he said. “Osimhen is a Trojan for Nigeria, but it was a low.

“I told the NFF not to make a pronouncement on this before they have engaged Osimhen. This is so especially because these are not the best of times for Nigeria football and we have to manage a lot of things.

“The NFF have to be focused and not be distracted.”

A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.

Nnamdi Okoli