Former Super Eagles captain Sunday Oliseh has defended Maduka Okoye’s omission from Nigeria’s 28-man AFCON 2025 squad, arguing that goalkeepers require different treatment from outfield players, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
Okoye was named in coach Eric Chelle’s 54-man preliminary list and was expected to challenge for the number one spot following Stanley Nwabali’s injury concerns.
However, the Udinese goalkeeper was missing from the final squad, with reports claiming he opted out after not being assured of a starting role, prompting questions about his patriotism.
Addressing the situation on his Global Football Show, Oliseh insisted goalkeepers must know in advance whether they will play.
“The goalkeeper, they are a different race. The goalkeeper is a totally different species. It’s a different race,” the former Borussia Dortmund midfielder said.
“The way you manage the goalkeeper is not the way they manage players. Goalkeepers must know in advance whether they will play or not. That is how it’s going to be.”
Oliseh recalled Okoye’s last appearance for Nigeria, when the keeper was heavily criticised online and on television.
“The last game he played for Nigeria, I remember this boy being torn into bits online, television, everywhere,” he said.
“He was so much destroyed that I remember looking at it and saying, if this boy were my son, I would tell him now, ‘go and stop playing. Just go make your life again. Forget it.’”
The 1994 AFCON winner argued that Okoye has rebuilt his career at Udinese and risked losing his place by attending AFCON without guarantees of playing time.
“Now, if you look at it from the man’s point of view, Okoye is now at Udinese. He is doing very well. He’s now finally got his act back together,” Oliseh said.
“His coming now to play at the AFCON at a time when the league is still on in Europe means that he will be losing his place at Udinese. If this player now comes to the Super Eagles and you don’t play him, once again, you destroy this man because what happens is that now he will not play here.
“He will go back to his club. God forbid the goalkeeper who took his place has done well in a few games. They will now tell him, Sorry, you went for AFCON, now you sit on the bench. The man is tied down.”
Oliseh dismissed claims of unpatriotism, stating, “If truly, he said, I’m not coming, I can understand it. Now I know people will say ‘yeah, but it’s unpatriotic’, but let’s not exaggerate. We’ve seen people who have been patriotic and have even died, and they refused to bury them. People are not slaves or to be used.”
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