Former Super Eagles coach Finidi George has addressed the controversy surrounding a viral video of Victor Osimhen, in which the footballer denied accusations of faking an injury to avoid participating in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Osimhen used Instagram Live on Saturday to assert that allegations of him feigning an injury to evade national team duties were untrue. In his address, Osimhen mentioned rumors involving Finidi George, claiming that the former Enyimba coach said he would not beg Osimhen to play for the Super Eagles. Osimhen expressed his frustration, stating that he had lost respect for George.
The incident led Nigerian sports journalist Colin Udoh to seek clarification from both the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) and Finidi George. Senior NFF officials confirmed that George never accused Osimhen of pretending to be injured. Additionally, Udoh spoke directly with George, who denied making the alleged statements and felt Osimhen should have handled the situation differently.
On Instagram, Udoh explained, “I contacted several people present at the meeting between Finidi, the NFF, and the minister. These reliable sources assured me that Finidi did not make the statements attributed to him. He never said he wouldn’t beg Osimhen or questioned his commitment. Finidi confirmed that he called Osimhen from Germany, which is why he was excused.”
Udoh added, “When player commitment was discussed, Finidi mentioned he wouldn’t beg any player to represent the Super Eagles but did not single out Osimhen or any other player. Finidi himself confirmed to me that he never made those statements and would address any issues privately with the players involved.”
According to Udoh, Finidi reached out to Osimhen as soon as he became aware of the video, clarifying that he never made the alleged remarks and suggesting that Osimhen should have approached him directly instead of airing his grievances publicly.
