“The signs were there” – Olu of Warri weighs in on Nigeria’s AFCON 2025 performance

Nigeria‘s quest for its fourth AFCON title will continue beyond Morocco after they were knocked out by the hosts in the semi-final last night, Soccerenet.ng reports.

While the affair against Morocco was a cagey one, the performance leading up to the Olu of Warri, Oritsetsola Ogiame Atuwase III.

The Warri King admitted the system employed by Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle is the most entertaining football setup he's seen for the past 26 years.

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Olu of Warri weighs in on Nigeria's AFCON 2025 performance

In an interview with BBC Pidgin, the 41-year-old recalled some of his best experiences watching the Super Eagles in the early 90's.

Atuwatse III mentioned Nigeria's glory days were between 1992 and 1998 before the massive decline came. He's not wrong. In 1994, the Super Eagles were placed 5th in the FIFA rankings.

However, the King revealed he's been able to relive the nostalgic experience by watching Nigeria in Morocco.

“The way we have played in these last five matches, I don't know if it's because of the disappointment of failing to qualify for the World Cup, but it's been good.

“The years between 1992 and 1998, Nigeria played the best football in the world, but after Denmark defeated us in 1998, we started going down.

“In 2000, when we hosted the Nations Cup and didn't win, that was when the drop was confirmed.

“We started showing signs [of progress] two years ago, when we got to the final of the Nations Cup, playing against the host. We were on fire.

“As someone who's been observing the Super Eagles for a long time, these four to five games are the best I've seen Nigeria play in the past 26 years.

“If they carry the momentum into the game against the host, it'll be good, but I understand the psychological effect,” the King concluded.

 

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The psychological effect did, in fact, come into play. While Nigeria held on for a penalty shoot-out, Samuel Chukwueze and Bruno Onyemaechi buckled under pressure as they failed to convert their spot kicks.