Super Eagles: Victor Osimhen & 4 other stars who hold Nigeria’s AFCON 2025 destiny in their hands

Momentum has quietly shifted around the Super Eagles in the build-up to the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2025), and the squad named by Eric Chelle carries a familiar mix of proven match-winners and players who must now step into bigger shoes.

Nigeria’s path in Morocco will not rest on talent alone; it will depend on the influence of a core group whose form and leadership could define how deep this team goes.

The 2023 run to the final set a new standard. Expectations have climbed since then, and the spotlight now falls on those expected to lift the team beyond simply competing. This isn’t a squad short of quality, but AFCON tournaments are often decided by players who show up when everything becomes tight and frantic.

Among the 28-man group, five stand out as the engines capable of tilting the competition in Nigeria’s favour. Here they are, in no order.

Victor Osimhen 

Nigeria cannot afford a slow-starting Victor Osimhen. His energy, aggression and movement unsettle backlines, and once he begins scoring, the entire team plays with more belief. His battles with defenders set the tone for the pressing, and his presence alone forces teams to stay deep.

AFCON 2025 will demand that he stays healthy, sharp and ruthless. If Osimhen catches fire in the group stage, Nigeria’s ceiling rises instantly.

Ademola Lookman  

Ademola Lookman enters this tournament in his best scoring shape of the season . His sharpness in front of goal and confidence in one-v-one situations give Nigeria an outlet few African teams can match. When games become tense, he is one of the few in the squad capable of producing something from nothing, a feint, a burst, a strike from the edge of the box.

His influence at club level has grown, and Chelle will need that same assertiveness in Morocco. A fully switched-on Lookman changes how opponents defend.

Calvin Bassey 

Calvin Bassey has gone from promising defender to genuine leader, and this tournament arrives at the right time for him to command the back line. His reading of the game has improved, his duels are cleaner, and he brings an intensity that younger defenders can follow.

Chelle will rely on him to stabilise the defensive unit, organise distances and impose authority against physical strikers. If Bassey plays like a captain in everything but title, the Super Eagles become far harder to break down.

Stanley Nwabali 

The Chippa United stopper has been the Super Eagles’ first choice for close to two years now, but for the first time there are real doubts surrounding his level. Recent errors have played a part, as has the fact that, by all accounts, he is carrying multiple injuries going into the upcoming tournament.

The exclusion of Maduka Okoye from the AFCON squad has rendered those misgivings moot, though. Simply put, Nwabali has to not only perform, but stay fit all the way through the tournament. Neither Francis Uzoho nor Amas Obasogie, who have made the squad as his back-ups, inspire much confidence among Nigeria fans, and so an injury to Nwabali could spell disaster.

Alex Iwobi 

Alex Iwobi’s role at Fulham has pushed him closer to the box, and that is exactly where the Super Eagles need him. When he drifts too deep, Nigeria lose connection between midfield and attack. When he operates in pockets around the area, chances multiply.

His intelligence, timing and final pass sharpen Osimhen’s output. In Morocco, Iwobi must be the team’s rhythm-setter not merely a helper in midfield battles.