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Victor Osimhen is expected to break Rashidi Yekini's record as the Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorer but which other football stars make the list?
As one of the very best football nations in Africa, Nigeria has a long history of world-class football talent, many of which performed at a high level for the national team.
Of all the superstars to have donned the famous green and white of the Nigerian national team, here are the top 10 Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers
Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers
10. Victor Obinna, Mudashiru Lawal and Nwankwo Kanu - 12 goals
Veteran Nigerian strikers Obinna Nsofor, Mudashiru Lawal, and the legendary Nwankwo Kanu were all prolific scorers for the Super Eagles, with each finding the net 12 times for the national team.
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Nsofor, however, took the least number of games to reach this tally - scoring 12 goals in 48 matches for the Super Eagles.
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The Late Muda Lawal played for Nigeria between 1975 and 1985, scoring 12 goals in 86 appearances. A midfielder during his days, Lawal guided Nigeria to its first African Nations Cup title in 1980 and also represented the country in a record five African Nations Cup.
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The other name on 12 goals is the legendary Kanu Nwanwko, who won the African Footballer of the Year award twice during his career. Better known for his skills and technicality, the lanky forward managed to notch the 12 goals in 87 appearances.
9. Daniel Amokachi and Kelechi Iheanacho - 13 goals
Daniel Amokachi was a force for the Super Eagles, netting 13 goals in just 44 appearances, including a wonderful strike during the 1994 World Cup.
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Despite his impressive strike rate, his impact went beyond scoring. His pace and power were a nightmare for defenders, and he remains a fan favorite for his exciting style of play.
Kelechi Iheanacho has notched an impressive 13 goals in just 43 appearances for the Super Eagles, solidifying his place as a key striker for the national team.
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He is only 27-year-old and should surpass this tally very soon if he stays injury-free.
8. Julius Aghahowa and Jay Jay Okocha - 14 goals
Julius Aghahowa is one of the best strikers to have worn the Super Eagles jersey. He is one of the two players tied on 14 goals for the Super Eagles, but he has done so in fewer games than Jay Jay Okocha.
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The retired forward has memorable goals, including his goal against Sweden at the 2002 World Cup, as well as in the Nations Cup. It took him 32 games to enter the top ten list of top scorers for Nigeria.
One of the greatest Nigerians to ever play for the Super Eagles, Okocha, also scored 14 goals, and it took him 75 appearances to do so.
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However, the impressive part is that seven of his 13 goals came during AFCON tournaments. He was known for his mesmerising dribbles and skills, but he also bagged some goals, including his lovely free kick against Cameroon during the 2004 AFCON.
7. Samson Siasia, Odion Ighalo and Ahmed Musa - 16 goals
Super Eagles legend Samson Siasia would go on to be more prominent for his national team involvement as a coach multiple times but he had a great playing career as well.
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The striker found the net 16 times in 51 appearances for the Super Eagles between 1984 and 1999 when he hung up his boots, making him joint seventh on the Top 10 Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers list.
Al Hilal striker Odion Ighalo is another one of three players tied on 16 goals for the Super Eagles but he has done so in 70 fewer games than Ahmed Musa.
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Ighalo is among the Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers having scored 16 goals in 37 appearances for the Super Eagles since debuting in 2015. This is an impressive achievement that may yet be improved upon as he has not officially hung up his boots with the Nigerian football team.
Current Super Eagles captain Ahmed Musa is Nigerian football royalty, not only is he the most capped Super Eagles player in Nigerian football, he is also joint-seventh on the list of Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers.
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The 30-year-old winger has scored 16 goals in 107 games since debuting for Nigeria in 2010 and he still has time to add to that tally.
6. Sunday Oyarekhua - 17 goals
Little-known Sunday Oyarekhua bagged 17 goals in 28 games for the Nigeria national football team when they were still called the “Green Eagles” between 1971 and 1976.
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However, his colleagues, ex-teammates and the few fans who watched him play have done their best to communicate just how good the late ‘Sunny’ was.
Oyarekhua retired from the Nigerian national team in 1976 as the Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorer until Segun Odegbami took over from where he stopped.
5. Obafemi Martins - 18 goals
Obafemi Martins is one the very best strikers to have represented the Super Eagles of Nigeria and the numbers prove it to be so as he is number five among the Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers.
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The former Inter Milan striker fondly called ‘Obagoal’ scored 18 goals in 48 appearances for the Super Eagles from 2004 to 2015. His pace, mobility and athleticism were the defining features of his career.
4. Ikechukwu Uche - 19 goals
Ikechukwu Uche spent eight years in the Super Eagles setup, establishing himself as a clutch performer and reliable player for the Nigerian national team and retired as number four among the Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers.
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The diminutive football striker scored 19 goals in 46 games between 2007 and 2015 for the Super Eagles after which he called it quits internationally.
3. Victor Osimhen and Yakubu Aiyegbeni - 21 goals
Victor Osimhen is the current superstar of the Super Eagles team and is many people's favourite to usurp the late great Rashidi Yekini as the all-time top scorer for Nigeria.
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Osimhen already has 21 goals in 35 games for the Super Eagles, most recently scoring Nigeria's opening goal at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
He is currently 16 goals behind Yekini but the 25-year-old still has his entire career ahead of him and has covered such ground in little time, it only makes sense that he will be moving up this list very soon.
Unfortunately, more people remember that open goal miss against South Korea at the 2010 World Cup more than the fact that Yakubu Aiyegbeni is the joint-third all-time top scorer in Super Eagles history.
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A certified goal machine and ice-cold finisher (except for that one time) Yakubu scored 21 goals in 57 games for Nigeria between 2000 and 2012.
2. Segun Odegbami - 23 goals
Viewed by many as the first true superstar of Nigerian football, Segun Odegbami was just as prolific as he was fun to watch.
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The ‘Mathematical’ Odegbami scored 23 goals in 46 games for the Nigerian national team within a shorter period of time compared to the rest of the top ten. His national team career lasted from 1976 to 1982.
1. Rashidi Yekini - 37 goals
The identity of number one is the worst kept secret, even infants are aware of the late great Rashidi Yekini and his prowess for the Super Eagles.
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Yekini is by far and away Nigeria’s all-time leading top scorer with 37 goals, at least 14 more than anyone else so far and many believe his record will remain unbroken as he sits top of the list of Super Eagles all-time highest goalscorers.
Rashidi Yekini scored 37 goals in 58 games at an impressive ratio of 0.63 goals per game. This is the bar which every Nigerian footballer looks up to since Yekini retired from the Nigerian national team in 1998 having debuted in 1984.
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