Finidi v Osimhen face-off: The Super Eagles player that convinced Napoli striker to stop Instagram Live rant 

Super Eagles striker Odion Ighalo persuaded Napoli star Victor Osimhen to stop his social media rant aimed at Finidi George.

Finidi has resigned his appointment as Nigeria coach in the wake of the Nigeria Football Federation's decision to hire a foreign technical adviser for the national team.

The three time African champions continued their poor performances in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, drawing 1-1 with South Africa's Bafana Bafana before a historic 2-1 loss to neighbors Republic of Benin.

Many Super Eagles fans and pundits reckon that Osimhen pulling out of the squad at short notice due to an ankle injury contributed to Nigeria's shoddy displays in the June internationals.

A Nigerian website published an unconfirmed story alleging that Finidi stated the Napoli striker did not want to participate in the World Cup qualifiers, and he cannot beg the reigning African Footballer of the Year to represent the country.

Osimhen was upset that Finidi and some Super Eagles fans questioned his commitment to the Nigeria national team and he took to Instagram Live to explain his side of the story. 

According to former Super Eagles media officer Colin Udoh, ex-Manchester United star Odion Ighalo successfully reached out to  Osimhen, advising him to end the Instagram Live session and step away from his phone.

Apart from the fact that the two center forwards are both from Edo State, Ighalo and Osimhen have a mentor-mentee relationship.

Osimhen was in attendance at Jan Breydel-Stadion in February 2020 when Ighalo made his European debut for the Red Devils.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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