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Tuesday, January 6, 2026

Osimhen-Lookman Bust-up: Chelle to speak with Super Eagles players

“My job now is to keep the players very focused on their training sessions and their behaviour,” said Chelle.

• January 6, 2026
Vicror Osimhen and Ademola Lookman
Vicror Osimhen and Ademola Lookman [Credit: Legit News]

Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle, on Monday, says his job is to keep players focused on training and behaviour, as he maintained that positive dynamics can quickly turn negative.

Chelle disclosed this while speaking to journalists after Nigeria thrashed Mozambique in their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in an incident-marred tie on Monday to reach the quarterfinals of the tournament.

“We just won one game. If we want to be ambitious, we must keep the quality on the pitch. And you know positive dynamics can easily turn to negative ones,” the coach said. “My job now is to keep the players very focused on their training sessions and their behaviour.”

Chelle was forced to substitute Victor Osimhen in the 68th minute after the forward clashed with Ademola Lookman due to an apparent disagreement over a play before the Galatasaray forward subsequently stopped taking part in the game altogether.

Commenting on the incident, Chelle stressed that the squad will discuss it later, while refusing to provide further details. He added that what happened on the pitch must stay within the group.

“What happened on the pitch will stay with the group. I don’t need to tell people what happened. I will keep that for the group and me. We will talk afterwards,” he stated.

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