Super Eagles: The curious case of Raphael Onyedika, Nigeria’s most disrespected talent

If the latest noises coming out of Belgium are anything to go by, the Super Eagles will be without the services of Raphael Onyedika for October’s final set of 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

The defensive midfielder sustained what appeared to be a hamstring injury in Wednesday’s shocking defeat at Westerlo, and while there is not yet a prognosis as to his recovery timeline, his involvement against Lesotho and Benin is highly unlikely. 

Under normal circumstances, this would be a crushing blow. Onyedika is unique among the ranks of capped Nigeria midfielders for his range of passing and understanding of tempo, and should be the platform in midfield under a coach in Eric Chelle who is unyielding in his commitment to possession and attacking. In reality, however, his absence will barely register.

Raphael Onyedika: Criminally overlooked

Since making his Super Eagles debut in 2022, Onyedika has played 17 times for Nigeria. Only six of those have been starts, however. The vast majority of his international career to date has consisted of him sitting on the bench.

This is surprising considering, as aforementioned, his sheer uniqueness. In spite of this, he is consistently overlooked, with Wilfred Ndidi and Frank Onyeka preferred in front of the defence despite neither being perfect fits for that responsibility. More puzzling, however, is the fact that, when he has been trusted to start, he has invariably impressed.

In two of his three most recent starting appearances, he was arguably the Super Eagles’ standout player: he scored against Benin in a losing effort in June 2024, and was imperious inside an intimidating Luzhniki Stadium against Russia in June of this year.

What makes his lack of involvement even more difficult to understand is the fact that it has transcended different coaches. He made his bow under Jose Peseiro, but only started 15 percent of matches for which he was in the squad with the Portuguese manager in charge. The reign of Finidi George was a short one, but Onyedika started two of the four matches the former Enyimba coach was in charge – comparatively, a boom period. Austin Eguavoen took interim charge right after, and handed the midfielder only one start in five matches. 

The arrival of Chelle was expected to ring in an era of relevance for Onyedika but, under the Malian, the Club Brugge midfielder has only started once.

Why have Super Eagles coaches repeatedly failed Onyedika?

Let's be clear: when it comes to international selection, club form only gets a player’s foot in the door. That earns invitations; for a place in the matchday XI, it comes down to the coaches’ assessments of training performances. 

The point of this distinction is to acknowledge the possibility that Onyedika does not train well. Some players simply do not, and that is not a commentary on their ability: Eden Hazard, famously, was a poor trainer, but there was never any denying his innate quality. Might that be the case for Onyedika? It cannot be ruled out, although over the course of his career in Europe, there has never been any suggestion of that.

Instead, it appears that the reason he is continually overlooked is his demeanour and relative lack of profile. Super Eagles coaches, time and again, have tended to defer to “big name” players: either those with ebullient personalities, or those who play in major leagues/clubs. An interesting case is of the aforementioned Onyeka, who was in a somewhat similar situation until his move to Premier League side Brentford. As soon as that happened, he became a fixture in the Nigeria setup, and began to get starts. 

If you do not have this to your benefit, then it helps to be an outgoing, assertive character. Onyedika, soft-spoken and shy, is the exact opposite, and so is perhaps easy to overlook for coaches who either do not know the players’ profiles and abilities well enough (Finidi, Chelle), or are not wedded to a possession-based style (Peseiro).

The upshot of this, sadly, is that until/unless Onyedika gets a move to a top European league, he will probably continue to be undervalued within the Super Eagles. And yet, here is a player who arguably would benefit and grow into a more outspoken presence the more he is trusted. A classic catch-22, if ever there was one.