Former Super Eagles coach Sunday Oliseh has addressed rumours regarding his alleged paternity of Bayern Munich forward Michael Olise.
In his clarification, Oliseh, who is also a former Super Eagles midfielder, expressed disappointment that the Bayern Munich player opted to represent France instead of Nigeria.
Olise was eligible to play for Nigeria through his father, for England by birth, and for Algeria through his mother’s lineage, before ultimately choosing to represent France.
The player, who held quad-national eligibility, has represented France at U18, U21, U23, and senior levels.
Despite the Nigeria Football Federation’s attempts to convince Olise to join the Super Eagles, the efforts were unsuccessful, as he had already pledged his allegiance to Les Bleus.
He was included by former Nigeria coach Gernot Rohr in the squad for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Benin and Lesotho, but he did not participate in either match. He also missed a scheduled meeting with former NFF president Amaju Pinnick in London prior to the 2022 World Cup.
“When I watch Olise play, it frustrates me. I can’t help but think that he should not be donning the French national team jersey; he ought to be wearing Nigeria’s green-white-green,” Oliseh remarked on Global Football Insights.
“This is why our people can be amusing. Some even sent messages questioning why I would sabotage our efforts, your son chose to play for France. He is not my son, and his surname Olise does not even have an ‘h’ at the end.”
Despite his disappointment regarding Olise’s choice of national representation, Oliseh praised the Bayern Munich star.
“And he is exceptionally talented. I must admit, when he was excelling at Crystal Palace, I thought to myself, ‘This guy is impressive, but perhaps he is lacking something.’
“However, now that I see him at Bayern, I believe that one day he might even be in contention for the Ballon d’Or because of his remarkable skills.
“Currently, defenders appear to be at a loss against him; they even resort to fouling and insulting him to provoke a reaction, yet he remains composed.”