Reality TV personality Adekunle Olopade has reacted strongly to the Super Eagles’ semi-final defeat to Morocco, placing the blame on match officials rather than the Nigerian players.
In a post shared on X, Olopade accused the referee, Ghanaian official Daniel Laryea, of poor and biased officiating, which he said denied Nigeria a deserved victory. He pointed to several controversial moments, including a yellow card shown to defender Calvin Bassey and what he described as repeated fouls on Nigerian players that went unpunished.
Olopade maintained that the Super Eagles dominated large parts of the game and created numerous scoring chances, arguing that the match should not have progressed to a penalty shootout.
“First of all, the game wasn’t even supposed to get to penalties,” he wrote, urging critics to assess the entire match rather than focusing solely on the shootout. He added that Nigeria had the upper hand and displayed one of their strongest collective performances in recent times.
While acknowledging that Samuel Chukwueze struggled during the encounter, Olopade insisted that individual shortcomings should not overshadow what he described as a solid team display.
He further accused the referee of disrupting Nigeria’s rhythm through excessive whistle-blowing and claimed that the officiating favoured the host nation. According to him, the number of questionable decisions against Nigeria went beyond normal errors and deserved scrutiny.
Olopade also called on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to address the officiating concerns, stressing that the issue should not be dismissed as fan rivalry or banter.
“Yesterday’s match felt like Nigeria against the whole of Africa,” he said, adding that, in his view, the Super Eagles were unfairly denied a place in the final.
The comments have since sparked debate among fans, with many echoing concerns over officiating standards in major African football competitions.
About the Author
