The 2025 AFCON ought to be the litmus test as to whether the Super Eagles are now a one-man band of Victor Osimhen and 10 other players.
Osimhen’s goals carried the Super Eagles in the second half of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers leading to some suggesting that the team can no longer fly without the Galatasaray superstar striker.
At last year’s AFCON, the goals of Ademola Lookman and skipper William Ekong took the Super Eagles all the way to final, while Osimhen’s whole-hearted and selfless play took the pressure off the attack.
For the 2025 AFCON, coach Eric Chelle has selected five strikers – Osimhen, Paul Onuachu, Jerome Akor, Cyriel Dessers and Salim Fago Lawal.
With his favoured 4-4-2 formation, this will allow for two strikers to start.
In the same Turkish Super Lig where Osimhen plies his trade and has six goals, Onuachu is the leading scorer with 11 goals in 15 appearances for Trabzonspor so far.
‘Big Paul’ proved he knows his way to goal at Danish club FC Midtjylland as well as Genk in Belgium.
However, he has failed to set on fire the international scene as he has only managed three goals in 25 appearances for the Super Eagles
He scored the match winner under a minute in his full Super Eagles debut in a friendly against Egypt, which Nigeria won in March 2019.
At last year’s AFCON, Onuachu clocked a total of five minutes of action – vs Equatorial Guinea (1 minute), vs Cote d’Ivoire (2 minutes), vs Cameroon (1 minute) and vs Angola (1 minute).
He last played for Nigeria in a 2-1 shock loss to Benin in a 2026 World Cup qualifier in June 2024.
At the ripe old age of 31, time is fast running out for the giant striker to prove he can also score goals for the Super Eagles.
His case is even more difficult because he is widely seen as a similar type striker to Osimhen and he will also need the trust of the coach.
Like Onuachu, Sevilla striker Akor also got off to flying start with the Super Eagles when he came off the bench to score a super goal against Lesotho in a crucial 2026 World Cup qualifier.
The 25-year-old striker also fired his second goal in a 2025 World Cup Playoff against Gabon last month.
His self-belief has been boosted by his goals and all-round play in La Liga and so a lot would be expected of him at his first AFCON.
He has so far been the preferred twin striker for Osimhen by coach Eric Chelle.
This will also be the maiden AFCON for Cyriel Dessers, who staked a serious claim for a Super Eagles spot at the Unity Cup in London in May.
The much-travelled centre-forward has recovered from injury in time for this tournament and it is now left to be seen whether he will grab his chance again.
For Croatia-based Salim Lawal, this AFCON will be a learning experience.
The former Flying Eagles striker is bottom of the pecking order, but at 22 he has a bright future ahead of him.
Super Eagles Forwards for 2025 AFCON: Ademola Lookman (Atalanta BC, Italy); Samuel Chukwueze (Fulham FC, England); Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray FC, Turkey); Simon Moses (Paris FC, France); Chidera Ejuke (Sevilla FC, Spain); Akor Adams (Sevilla FC, Spain); Paul Onuachu (Trabzonspor AS, Turkey); Cyriel Dessers (Panathinaikos FC, Greece); Salim Fago Lawal (NK Istra 1961 Croatia)
