Soccer
Bright Osayi-Samuel of Nigeria during the Africa Cup of Nations AFCON 2025 Copyright: IMAGOxshengolpixsx
Super Eagles defender Bright Osayi-Samuel has condemned the quality of officiating in their loss to Morocco in the semifinal of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations , Soccernet.ng reports.
Osayi-Samuel was one of the standout performers for Nigeria against Morocco on Wednesday.
He put in a solid defensive performance despite being overloaded with attacks from Ismael Saibari, Hamza Igamane, and Abde Ezzalzouli.
In his 120 minutes of action, the Birmingham City star registered three tackles, two interceptions, seven clearances, four recoveries, and 79 touches.
Unfortunately for him and his teammates, his effort came to naught, as they eventually lost via a penalty shootout.
After the game, Osayi-Samuel was visibly disappointed, but he remained positive, noting that they were only bested by the narrowest of margins.
“Painful, very painful, to obviously lose. I think we played very well, defense was… the back four was amazing,” Osayi-Samuel told Victor Ademola.
“I’m proud of the team. The manager came down and said he’s proud of the team, the (NFF) board members came down and said they’re proud of the team, so it’s just really painful that you know, we lost on penalties. Penalties is all about luck, it’s a lottery, and today we didn’t win that.”
The referee of the game between Nigeria and Morocco, Daniel Laryea, has come under a lot of criticism for his performance.
He made a few questionable calls in the game, albeit none of them cost the Super Eagles a goal or contributed directly to the team’s loss.
However, his yellow card to Calvin Bassey was costly, as that effectively ruled the Fulham star out of the third-place game.
At different points in the match, several Nigerian players even expressed their frustration at his calls.
Osayi-Samuel did not hold back when talking about the officiating after the game. He admitted that Laryea was not the reason for their loss, but stated that his performance on the night was disappointing.
Bright Osayi-Samuel:
“The refereeing was appalling. It’s a big shame we still have officials like that today.”
— speaking after Nigeria’s loss to host Morocco in the AFCON 2025 semifinals.#AdemolaVictorAtAfcon2025
Powered by @MrChefNigeria — proud sponsors of the Super… pic.twitter.com/VZCdgWeVwo— Dr. Victor Ademola (@AdemolaVictorTv) January 15, 2026
“One thing I would say is that the referee was appalling. I’m not saying that that’s the reason why we lost, but just making very, very wrong decisions,” Osayi-Samuel added.
“It’s really painful to see that we have refs like that in a big game like today, you know. But I wish Morocco all the best.”
Following their loss to Morocco in the semifinal, the Super Eagles will take on Egypt in the third-place match. Hopefully, the officiating will improve in that game.
Kelvin Omachonu
Kelvin Omachonu is a professional football columnist and sports writer with over half a decade of experience covering major events and delivering captivating, analytically-driven stories.
A graduate of the University of Ibadan, he is fueled by a profound dedication to sports journalism and the beautiful game. His insights have previously been featured in respected outlets, including IndyPress UI, UCJ UI Newshive NG, Sportpremi, and a few others.
Away from work, Kelvin is an avid fan of basketball, enjoys a great movie, and is always discovering new music.
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