2023 has been a great year for many Nigerian footballers at home and abroad.
Soccernet.ng’s Imhons Erons announces Nigeria’s Team of the Year after taking a close look at individual performances in the top flight.
GK: Jonathan Rasheed
While Maduka Okoye and Francis Uzoho have struggled to get playing time for their clubs, Jonathan Rashid has excelled in Sweden.
Although his club IFK Varnamo finished fifth in the Allsvenskan, the 32-year-old goalkeeper was ranked as the second-best goalkeeper in the recently concluded league season.
Rashid takes the top spot after Okorunleke Ojo, who helped Enyimba FC win the NPFL title in 2023.
RB: Bright Osayi-Samuel
Ola Aina, Tyrone Ebuehi and Chidoji Awaziem have been Nigeria’s preferred right-backs in recent years, but the rise of Ossai-Samuel in 2023 changes that.
The former QPR defender repeated his impressive performances for Fenerbahce with the Super Eagles and could be Jose Peceiro’s first choice at AFCON.
CB: Igoh Ogbu
One of the Flying Eagles’ star players at the 2019 FIFA U20 World Cup, Ogbu moved to Slavia Prague in January 2023, moving him one step closer to first-class football.
The defender is a top player in the Czech League and Europa League and could quickly become a key player for the Super Eagles.
CB: Calvin Bassey
After a nightmare spell at Ajax, Calvin Bassey is developing into a top-class central defender at Fulham.
Semi Ajayi, Leon Balogun and William Troost-Ekon also had memorable years in many ways, but Bassey has outshined them this year.
The former Glasgow Rangers star has impressed in the Premier League and has developed into a top-class left centre-back with help from Fulham manager Marco Silva.
LB: Bruno Onyemaechi
Onyemaechi joins the Nigeria squad with Jamil Collins on the treatment bed for a long time and Porto’s Zaidu Sanusi struggling with injury problems.
The youngster was an integral part of Portuguese club Boavista and the Super Eagles during the 2023 AFCON qualifiers. He finished 2023 as Nigeria’s best left-back.
LM: Ademola Lookman
While Moses Simon and Nantes struggled throughout the year in Ligue 1, Ademola Lookman and Atalanta had some great performances in Serie A.
Lookman only scored one goal and one assist in five appearances for Nigeria in 2023, but excelled at Atalanta, contributing 15 goals and eight assists in all competitions.
For this reason, he kicked Simon out of this ideal team.
CM: Alex Iwobi
Iwobi’s consistent all-or-nothing performances were one of the reasons Everton avoided relegation last season.
The former Arsenal player joined Fulham in the summer and was one of the Cottage’s most creative strikers.
Iwobi was also Nigeria’s reliable mister and played a consistent role in 2023 as Nigeria lost only one of their eight matches and won four more.
CM: Wilfred Ndidi
Alhassan Yusuf won the Pro League title with Royal Antwerp and Raphael Onyedika did well with Club Brugge, but Wilfred Ndidi won the championship before them.
Although Ndidi has not been able to help Leicester City avoid relegation to the Championship, he is backing an immediate return to the Premier League.
After changing roles in the Foxes’ midfield, the dynamic defensive midfielder is enjoying the most productive period of his career, with two goals and five assists this season.
RM: Victor Boniface
Boniface is traditionally a center forward and can play any role throughout the attack. He had a fantastic spell at Union Saint Giroise before moving to Bayer Leverkusen in the summer.
The young striker has been a revelation this season in Germany, winning the Bundesliga’s Newcomer of the Month award for the first four times.
Boniface led Bayer Leverkusen to the league title and the Europa League title, leaving AC Milan’s Samuel Chukwueze off the list.
CF: Victor Osimhen
Nigeria’s first and only $100 million striker, Victor Osimhen, peaked in 2023.
Osimhen scored at will, helping Napoli reach the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time and win the Scudetto for the first time in 33 years.
Osimhen became Nigeria’s top scorer in 2023 with 29 goals for Napoli and 5 goals for the Super Eagles.
CF: Gift Orban
Telem Moffi, Kelechi Iheanacho, Odion Ighalo, Chuba Akpom and Akole Adams could have taken the spot alongside Osimhen. Nevertheless, no one deserves it more than Orbán.
In 2023, Orban will score more hat-tricks than Erling Haaland, the fastest hat-trick in European club competition history, and more club goals than any Nigerian player in the world, including Osimhen ( He scored 32 goals. / p>
The youngster was nominated for the CAF Young Player of the Year award for his outstanding performance, completing the line-up of Nigeria’s Best Eleven for 2023.
Who would you like to see on the team? Share your answer with us in the comments section.
