{"id":8084,"date":"2026-01-09T16:32:49","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T16:32:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=8084"},"modified":"2026-01-09T16:32:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T16:32:49","slug":"nigeria-coach-steers-clear-of-osimhen-fallout-and-unpaid-bonus-rumours-africa-cup-of-nations-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=8084","title":{"rendered":"Nigeria coach steers clear of Osimhen fallout and unpaid bonus rumours | Africa Cup of Nations News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>Nigeria are dealing with reports of unpaid bonuses and Victor Osimhen spat before facing Algeria in AFCON quarterfinal.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-dates\">\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Published On 9 Jan 2026<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">9 Jan 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share\" data-testid=\"rich-share\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__button-wrapper\"><button class=\"rich-share__button row\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><\/p>\n<p>Click here to share on social media<\/p>\n<p><svg class=\"icon icon--share2 icon--primary icon--16 \" viewbox=\"0 0 20 16\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><title>share2<\/title><path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M11.688 9.048c-.659 0-1.252.282-1.673.733l-4.92-2.45c.016-.115.028-.232.028-.352 0-.117-.011-.23-.027-.343l4.913-2.423a2.285 2.285 0 0 0 1.68.739C12.964 4.952 14 3.899 14 2.6 14 1.302 12.965.25 11.688.25S9.377 1.302 9.377 2.601c0 .117.01.23.027.343L4.49 5.367a2.285 2.285 0 0 0-1.68-.739C1.536 4.628.5 5.681.5 6.979c0 1.299 1.035 2.35 2.312 2.35.659 0 1.252-.281 1.673-.731l4.92 2.45a2.357 2.357 0 0 0-.029.351c0 1.299 1.035 2.351 2.312 2.351S14 12.698 14 11.399s-1.035-2.35-2.312-2.35Z\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>Nigeria\u2019s preparations for its Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal against Algeria have been dogged by speculation about internal strife involving star striker Victor Osimhen and reports that the players were not being paid their bonuses.<\/p>\n<p>Nigeria coach Eric Chelle would not comment on the reports on Friday, when he said such questions need to be directed to the Nigeria Football Federation.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 3 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>\u201cThis is my job, to stay focused \u2013 to try to stay focused \u2013 to stay focused about only the pitch (field), and definitely my job is on the pitch, not around,\u201d Chelle said in Marrakesh a day before Nigeria plays Algeria in the city.<\/p>\n<p>The NFF still advertises a vacancy for the position of head coach of the men\u2019s team, a year and a day after it appointed Chelle to the position.<\/p>\n<p>Nigerian media outlets reported that the players had threatened not to train or travel to Marrakesh for the match unless they were paid agreed bonuses for winning their first four Africa Cup games.<\/p>\n<p>The team arrived in Marrakesh on Thursday and had their first training session there the same day. Chelle said they would train again later on Friday.<\/p>\n<p>Chelle declined to comment about reports that Osimhen was on the verge of walking out of the team after an on-field argument with teammate Ademola Lookman during the Super Eagles\u2019 4-0 win over Mozambique in the last 16 on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI prefer to speak about the (upcoming) game. Victor is there and that\u2019s all,\u201d Chelle said. \u201cYes, everyone\u2019s speaking about Osimhen and Lookman, it\u2019s normal, they\u2019re the last two best African players, but we\u2019re here to serve them to score, we\u2019re working for them. We\u2019re a team, and that\u2019s what teamwork is all about.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Osimhen scored two goals in that match with Lookman involved in both, but apparently he was furious when Lookman tried scoring instead of setting him up for another.<\/p>\n<p>Lookman played down the argument when asked about it post-game, when he said it was \u201cjust football\u201d and called Osimhen his \u201cbrother\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Lookman also subsequently posted photos of himself celebrating with Osimhen on social media with the caption \u201ctogether always\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Nigeria, which lost the final to Ivory Coast in the last edition, is bidding to win the title for a fourth time. It would help make up for the disappointment of failing to qualify for the World Cup.<\/p>\n<p>Both of Algeria\u2019s two titles included wins over Nigeria on the way \u2013 twice in 1990 and again in the semifinals in 2019.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nigeria are dealing with reports of unpaid bonuses and Victor Osimhen spat before facing Algeria in AFCON quarterfinal. Published On 9 Jan 20269 Jan 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Nigeria\u2019s preparations for its Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal against Algeria have been dogged by speculation about internal strife involving star [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8084"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8084\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}