Nigeria legend Segun Odegbami has backed Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen to surpass Rashidi Yekini’s long-standing goal record for the national team, Footynaija.com reports.
Odegbami, a former Green Eagles forward, made the prediction in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos. He praised Osimhen for overtaking his own record as Nigeria’s second-highest all-time scorer, a feat that had stood for 44 years.
I’m just going to drop this Rashidi Yekini video here… For those who never saw him play. pic.twitter.com/xYXdI4Z7d8
— Abiodun Afolabi (@afolabiodun) March 21, 2025
The Galatasaray forward moved ahead of Odegbami after netting twice in Nigeria’s 2-0 victory over Rwanda in a 2026 World Cup qualifier in Kigali last Friday. Osimhen’s brace took his international tally to 25 goals, leaving him just 12 goals shy of Yekini’s record of 37, set in 1998.
Yekini’s last goal for Nigeria came in a 2-2 friendly with Jamaica in February 1998, just months before the World Cup in France. This means his goalscoring for Super Eagles has stood for 27 years.
Nigeria’s all-time top scorers.
1. Rasheed Yekini 37
2. Victor Osimhen 26
3. Segun Odegbami 23
4. Yakubu Ayegbeni 21
5. Ikechukwu Uche 19
6. Obafemi Martins 18#NGAZIM #SoarSuperEagles pic.twitter.com/QEj9AUrcfZ— Bolarinwa Olajide (@iambolar) March 25, 2025
Odegbami, nicknamed ‘Mathematical’ during his playing days, acknowledged that his record and Yekini’s had remained intact for too long, urging young Nigerian strikers to rise to the challenge.
“Osimhen knows how to do what he does very well. He is a goal poacher, who is reliable. You don’t see him exhibit too much finesse, skills, and dribbling,” Odegbami said.
“He is more focused and not a showman—always around the box, burying goals in the net. With me, he will go far. I hope he will end Yekini’s long reign because Yekini has been there for so long.
“I only played less than six years and kept the record for so long. That means we are not producing top strikers well enough.
“In fact, I wasn’t a striker myself, only playing from the wings. So I think it is a good thing with Osimhen. With his age, he has more years ahead of him to surpass Yekini.
“I am wishing Osimhen the best of luck,” he added.
Rashidi Yekini.
The man that went from a mechanical apprentice to Vitória de Setúbal and Nigerian football legend. Your memory lives on ️ ⚽️pic.twitter.com/gHyg50yA4s— ✨ DaddyMO✨ (@therealdaddymo1) March 22, 2025
For Osimhen to eclipse Yekini’s record, the 25-year-old will need at least 12 more goals in Nigeria’s colours.