Dapo Afolayan: Has Blackburn star done enough to earn Super Eagles call-up?

Blackburn star Dapo Afolayan has made a strong case for a first Super Eagles call-up this season, but a dip in recent weeks has left the question open.

The 29-year-old has started all 13 of his club’s Championship games, scoring four goals and providing two assists.

Eric Chelle has yet to hand the London-born attacker a chance to represent the Super Eagles, although his name has been in and around the Nigerian camp.

In this piece, Afrik-Foot breaks down the reasons why a call-up may be on the cards for the former St. Pauli forward ahead of Nigeria’s AFCON 2027 qualifiers against Tanzania.

Has Dapo Afolayan done enough for a Super Eagles invite?

Afolayan’s numbers peaked in a sharp spell last month. He scored twice in a 3-1 win over Millwall on 12th September before scoring and assisting in a 2-2 draw at Portsmouth a week later. That run earned him a nomination for the Championship Player of the Month award.

On 13th October, he scored the only goal in Blackburn’s 1-0 win at Bristol City, dribbling in from about 20 yards before firing past Sam Tickle. Blackburn coach Tony Mowbray was in awe of that goal.

He also arrives with a wealth of experience in European football. Afolayan helped St Pauli win promotion to the Bundesliga in the 2023/24 season and left for Blackburn in February with 16 goals and seven assists from 93 appearances in all competitions for the German club.

Just last month, the former West Ham United forward expressed his desire to don the Green and White jersey of Nigeria.

“I’d love to play for Nigeria; it’s always been something I wanted to do since I was a kid. I’ve been really close,” the former West Ham United forward said,” Dapo Afolayan told Blackburn’s official football channel.

“You know, the timing could be unfortunate in a few cases.

“I was playing really well in the Bundesliga, and I was really close to a call-up, and I ended up not playing before the March break, so I didn’t get it.

“It’s just one of those things that has not come to pass, but it can still,” he concluded.

He has previously played for England C but has no senior cap, so he remains eligible for Nigeria. He also held talks with Nigeria Football Federation officials during the 2025 Unity Cup.

Why Afolayan may have to wait

The forward’s recent run of form is the problem. Afolayan has not scored or assisted in his last three games, a 3-2 defeat at West Bromwich Albion, a 2-0 win over Wrexham and a 4-0 loss at Swansea City last Saturday.

Blackburn are 13th in the EFL Championship with 18 points from 13 matches, 10 behind leaders Middlesbrough.

Another obstacle is competition in Eric Chelle’s squad. In a comparison of Afolayan with Chelle’s wingers, Ademola Lookman and Samuel Chukwueze ranked ahead on the level of club football, while Moses Usor scored a winner on his Super Eagles debut and Moses Simon has 102 caps.

Femi Azeez and Zadok Yohanna are also in the plans of the Franco-Malian tactician, having missed the past windows via injuries.

Afolayan is also 29, and Championship football is a step below the leagues where most of those names ply their trade.

Based on numbers alone, Afolayan deserves to be on the team’s radar, but his form has cooled, and the options ahead of him are strong.

A November call-up would be a reward for a good start rather than a statement of selection. To move from hopeful to certainty, he needs to score more goals, and be more influential for Blackburn.