Former Super Eagles striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni has admitted that even at the peak of his career, he would have found it hard to score goals in the present Nigerian team because of their lack of creativity.
Yakubu Aiyegbeni, 42, who wore the national colours between 2000 and 2012, was speaking on Sunday Oliseh’s podcast where he assessed Nigeria’s troubled 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign.
Under coach Eric Chelle, the Super Eagles have scored only nine goals in eight matches, conceding seven, and are stuck in third place in their group. That position leaves them dangerously close to missing back-to-back World Cups.
Aiyegbeni, fondly called “The Yak” during his playing days, said the team’s midfield imbalance is starving strikers of chances.
“When we look at the team, we have too many defensive midfielders. We don’t have a creative midfielder. If I play in this team, I’ll struggle to score goals. I’m telling you because when you look at Osimhen when he plays, he’s fighting because he knows already,” he said.
The former Everton and Middlesbrough forward added that the Eagles’ style of play makes it impossible to build fluid attacks. “We don’t have a midfielder who can pass the ball. We always pass the ball sideways. We cannot string six passes or seven passes. When we pass the ball a bit, then we kick it long. We cannot build a team like this,” he stressed.
Despite the criticism, Aiyegbeni’s legacy in Nigerian football is undeniable. He is the fourth-highest scorer in the country’s history with 21 goals in 55 games. He featured at the 2002 and 2010 World Cups, though fans still recall his unforgettable miss against South Korea in South Africa.
At club level, Yakubu remains Nigeria’s most prolific striker in the English Premier League with 95 goals, achieved during spells at Portsmouth, Middlesbrough, Everton, Leicester City and Blackburn Rovers.
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