FORMER Super Eagles striker Peter Odemwingie has criticised William Troost-Ekong’s continued captaincy of Nigeria during his spell in Saudi Arabia, insisting that only players competing in Europe’s top leagues should wear the national team’s armband.
News Point Nigeria reports that Troost-Ekong, who has since retired from international football, moved to Saudi Pro League side Al-Kholood in 2024 after leaving Greek club PAOK. Despite moving away from European football, the defender retained the Super Eagles captaincy under former head coach Finidi George and subsequently Eric Chelle.
Speaking on Brila FM alongside former Nigeria international Ifeanyi Udeze, Odemwingie said Troost-Ekong was relying on past achievements rather than current form, arguing that moving away from Europe’s elite leagues should automatically end a player’s tenure as national-team captain.
“It got to a point that when I see players like William Troost-Ekong, our captain, now retired, he moved to Saudi Arabia, and he was still captain of the national team. I understand that he is still riding on his past glory, but, for me, when things like that happen, it is an automatic out for captaincy,” Odemwingie said.
The former West Bromwich Albion forward argued that the requirement should extend beyond Nigeria, insisting that national-team captains should be competing at the highest level of club football.
“Any player that does not play in a top league should not captain the Super Eagles; it is a fact. It is not natural. Not just Nigeria, but any country,” he added.
Troost-Ekong was one of Nigeria’s most experienced defenders and captained the Super Eagles to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations final, where he won the Player of the Tournament award. However, Odemwingie insisted that past achievements should not guarantee leadership once a player’s club career moves away from the highest level.
Asked whether the same logic applied to Victor Osimhen, who plays for Galatasaray in Turkey and has been tipped as a future Nigeria captain, Odemwingie was quick to draw a distinction.
“Oh, the Turkish Lig is a big league. They play Champions League football. I was talking about when players leave European football. European football for now is the strongest in the world,” he said.
He explained that the pursuit of Champions League football remained an important marker of a player’s priorities, arguing that players competing for the continent’s biggest club prize were more likely to have football as their primary focus.
“The Champions League is the biggest trophy, and the players that are hunting for that are usually the ones who put football first; every other thing comes after,” Odemwingie said, pointing to Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Saudi Arabia as an example of the decline he believes can follow after leaving European football.
“You know, Cristiano was still playing in Saudi and captained Portugal, but we saw the decline in his form; it is riding on past glory. The players who go after Saudi money want to have two sides of the coin. They want to secure their financial future and play football. Half their head is already somewhere else,” he concluded.
Wilfred Ndidi has captained Nigeria in Troost-Ekong’s absence, while Moses Simon, Victor Osimhen and Alex Iwobi have all served as vice-captains.