Oliseh questions Musa’s role as Super Eagles bench-warming captain

Former Super Eagles player and coach, Sunday Oliseh, has raised concerns about team captains not starting matches.

He said it’s wrong for a captain to be on the bench during games.

Speaking on Channel Sports on Sunday, Oliseh called the situation “an anomaly.” He believes that the captain should always be on the field, leading the team.

“This is not normal,” Oliseh said. “It started when we allowed captains to sit on the bench. A captain should lead from the pitch, not from the sidelines. If he’s on the bench, then it’s like someone else is leading the team.”

Ahmed Musa, the current captain, recently returned to the Super Eagles squad for the 2025 Unity Cup.

It was his first appearance since the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. Musa came on in the 62nd minute during a 2-1 win over Ghana, then left the team camp to get married.

Oliseh, who captained Nigeria during the 1990s, stressed that leadership on the pitch inspires confidence and unity among players.

He warned that the practice of keeping captains on the bench could weaken team spirit and confuse the leadership structure during matches.

He urged the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the coaching crew to rethink the tradition of assigning the captain’s armband to players who are no longer regular starters, insisting that leadership should go hand in hand with performance and presence on the field.