Former Super Eagles striker, Yakubu Aiyegbeni has raised concerns over the lack of creativity in Nigeria’s midfield setup.
Aiyegbeni argued that the current national team is overloaded with defensive midfielders, leaving the forwards starved of quality service.
He noted that even past strikers would find it difficult to thrive under the present circumstances.
“We’re just a little bit short in the midfield, that’s the most important thing now because we don’t have a creative midfielder who can pass the ball to the strikers,” Aiyegbeni said.
“Look at the way we scored goals in the national team in our days, it was different. We had players like Sunday Oliseh, Jay-Jay Okocha, and Finidi George. But now, we don’t have that. We have too many defensive midfielders.”
The former Everton forward pointed out that the lack of creativity explains why Nigeria’s strikers continue to struggle in front of goal.
Also read: Super Eagles Will Qualify for 2026 World Cup… Iwobi Urges Fans to ‘Believe’
“Even me, if I played in this generation, I would find it difficult to score goals because there is no creative midfielder to supply passes.
“The only one we have is Alex Iwobi. He works hard, runs for 120 minutes, helps the defense, and does a great job, but he is not the kind of creative midfielder who can consistently set up the strikers,” he added.
He called for greater attention to be paid to the country’s midfield across all levels, stressing that it is a major factor in the national team’s current struggles.
