It has been a fantastic 2023/24 season for Nigerian players in Europe, but who would make our Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season?
It has been a long and tortuous season for Super Eagles players as they traversed several competitions, including AFCON 2023.
Despite the travails, they held well and put up fantastic performances that have seen several clubs looking to snatch them from their current sides.
Based on their performances and results this season, we have drawn up a Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season, and we believe our list will match up to the most arduous criticism.
Who do you think missed out on the list that should have been in our Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season?
Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season
5. Raphael Onyedika (Club Brugge, Belgium)
In only his second season with Club Brugge, Raphael Onyedika is already proving that he needs a bigger stage to showcase his skills.
The defensive midfielder was drafted into the team for AFCON 2023 following the injury to Wilfred Ndidi. Despite the limited chances he got, his football intelligence was there for all to see.
There are rumours of interest from the Premier League for his services. The former Midtjylland midfielder missed three Jupiler Pro League games this season due to injury and suspension.
He was also absent for six games due to international assignments. When available, he rarely plays less than 90 minutes for his club.
Onyedika helped his club to a Champions League Playoff spot. He also helped Club Brugge reach the semi-finals of the Belgian Cup and the UEFA Europa Conference League, where they lost both ties 3-2 on aggregate to Union Saint-Gilloise and Fiorentina.
Onyedika is fifth on our Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season.
4. Terem Moffi (OGC Nice, France)
Terem Moffi is another entrant into our Top 5 Super Eagles players for the 2023/24 season. The OGC Nice striker had a stellar season for the French Ligue 1 club and merited a place on the list.
Moffi joined Nice permanently in the summer of 2023 and has proven to be a solid addition to the club. With him leading the attack for the club, they challenged competitively for the Ligue 1 title but lacked enough gas to go the distance.
Moffi scored 11 goals from 28 league appearances and added two assists from almost two thousand minutes of play.
Moffi helped OGC Nice qualify for the Europa League next season, as the club finished fifth on the log behind Lille, Brest, Monaco and the champions PSG.
Nice also crashed out of the Coupe de France in the quarter-finals following a 3-1 loss to PSG.
Moffi finished eighth on the top scorers chart.
3. Victor Osimhen (Napoli, Italy)
It was not a fantastic season for Napoli star Victor Osimhen, but he merits a place in our top 5 Super Eagles Players this season.
For mere mortals, his achievements would be something to celebrate, but this is Osimhen, and it was some way off his lofty standards.
Several factors worked against Osimhen and worked against him reaching his high standards. Sitting atop the list was the turmoil between him and his club and the continuous rumours about his future.
In January, he was also away for AFCON 2023. He scored one goal for the Super Eagles at the tournament. However, his contribution at AFCON 2023 was immense, as he led the line well to see the Super Eagles reach the final.
Despite finishing tenth in the league, Osimhen helped Napoli reach the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League and the Coppa Italia. He also led the club to the final of the Supercoppa Italiana, where they lost to Inter Milan 0-1.
Osimhen scored 15 Serie A goals to finish behind Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus – 16) and Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan – 24).
2. Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen, Germany)
What else can one say about Victor Boniface and Bayer Leverkusen this season? He was instrumental to the success of the Die Werkself as they won their first-ever league title.
The former Union Saint-Gilloise forward started the season on fire, going on a goal-scoring spree and racking up a record-breaking four straight Rookie of the Month awards. He also won one Bundesliga Player of the Month award.
Injury kept him out for a sizable amount of the season, causing him to miss his first-ever AFCON with the Super Eagles.
Despite the setbacks, he helped Bayer Leverkusen to a Bundesliga unbeaten season (Something even Pep Guardiola could not achieve with Bayern Munich). They also went unbeaten in DFB Pokal and reached the Europa League final unbeaten before losing to Atalanta 3-0.
Ordinarily, Boniface should be in our Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season, but the Europa League loss did him in. He finished eighth in the Bundesliga top scorers chart with 14 goals.
1. Ademola Lookman (Atalanta, Italy)
Ademola Lookman is number one in our Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season. He contributed vital goals for his club, as they qualified for the UEFA Champions League, finishing fifth in the Serie A.
Lookman led Atalanta to the final of Coppa Italia, where they lost 1-0 to Juventus. He was Atalanta’s Player of the 2022/23 season and has continued to soar high for the club, with Premier League clubs looking to bring him back to England.
Lookman saved the best for last when he scored a fantastic hat trick over Bayer Leverkusen in the final of the Europa League.
He was the Europa League final Player of the match and is an early frontrunner for the African Footballer of the Year award.
Lookman also scored three goals at AFCON 2023, as the Super Eagles reached the final, and he was in the CAF team of the season for the tournament.
Who can deny Lookman the title of Nigeria’s best footballer this season? He is our number one Top 5 Super Eagles Player of the Season.
Honourable mentions
Other players who performed well in the 2023/24 season, include Maduka Okoye, who was exemplary for Udinese since taking over the goalkeeper position in January. He even won one Player of the Month for Udinese.
Stanley Nwabali was a revelation for the Super Eagles at AFCON 2023, putting in heartwarming performances that led to the Super Eagles reaching the final. Nwabali saved two penalties in the semi-finals and narrowly missed the best goalkeeper award.
Alhassan Yusuf also showed that Nigeria’s midfield is in safe hands as he marshalled it well in the absence of Wilfred Ndidi. The brimming attack of the Super Eagles is the only reason why Akor Adams has not gotten a look in, but it’s just a matter of time.
Wilfred Ndidi also had a stellar season for Leicester City as he helped them gain promotion to the Premier League.
Nathan Tella played several positions for Bayer Leverkusen and contributed immensely to their unbeaten season. He was an unused sub in the Europa League final.
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Top 10 Super Eagles Player of the Season 2023/24 |
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| # | Name | Club | Position | Apps | Goals | Assists | Mins Played | Clean sheets |
| 1 | Ademola Lookman | Atalanta | Winger | 43 | 15 | 8 | 2661 | |
| 2 | Victor Boniface | B. Leverkusen | Centre Forward | 34 | 21 | 10 | 2107 | |
| 3 | Victor Osimhen | Napoli | Centre Forward | 31 | 17 | 4 | 2449 | |
| 4 | Terem Moffi | OGC Nice | Centre Forward | 32 | 11 | 2 | 2075 | |
| 5 | Raphael Onyedika | Club Brugge | D. Midfield | 48 | 4 | 2 | 3576 | |
| 6 | Nathan Tella | B. Leverkusen | RW/RM/RWB | 41 | 7 | 6 | 1739 | |
| 7 | Akor Adams | Montpellier | Centre Forward | 33 | 10 | 2 | 2283 | |
| 8 | Yusuf Alhassan | R. Antwerp | CM/DM | 41 | 1 | 3 | 2389 | |
| 9 | Stanley Nwabali | Chippa Utd | Goalkeeper | 28 | 26 | 2514 | 12 | |
| 10 | Maduka Okoye | Udinese | Goalkeeper | 21 | 27 | 1920 | 4 | |
| 11 | Wilfred Ndidi | Leicester City | Midfielder | 3 | 6 | 6 | 2353 | |
This article was most recently revised and updated 4 months ago
