1994 Africa Cup of Nations-winning midfielder Sunday Oliseh has praised Super Eagles stars Calvin Bassey and Ademola Lookman, describing the latter as the most important player in Nigeria’s squad.

The duo have been instrumental in Nigeria’s march to the semifinals of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON), as the team has won five games, scored 14 goals, and conceded just four.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Oliseh singled out Bassey for his defensive brilliance, noting his rise in confidence and strong partnership with Semi Ajayi.

“Nwabali has been on holiday. That tells you how good our defensive network has been,” he said. “Look at the two central and a player nobody has been talking about that is impressing me so much is Calvin Bassey.”

“My God this boy has totally grown in confidence. He is a rock. You throw everything at this man, he would handle it. He is well complimented with Ajayi in the middle.”

Oliseh also highlighted the contributions of the midfield and Lookman, calling the Atalanta forward Nigeria’s most important player in the tournament.

“Every team, you need good strikers to play. You need good strikers to be able to finish up but nothing makes you win titles better than your defense and your midfield,” he added.

“What Onyeka, Ndidi, and what pre-assist king Iwobi has been doing in this tournament, it's been wonderful. And the player that I think is our most important player has been Lookman. This boy has made it difficult.”

He emphasized Lookman’s ability at Atalanta to consistently advance the play, noting that he rarely passes backward whenever he receives the ball in an attacking position.

“In fact there was a game I did a statistics on him, that was the game we played before the Algerian game, Mozambique. Lookman almost never passes one ball backward.  This is one of the most difficult things to do. He is always driving forward,” he said.

Nigeria will take on Morocco in the AFCON semifinal on Wednesday night in Rabat, with a spot in the final at stake.

Adeyemi Adewale