Former Super Eagles and Nigeria U23 coach, Samson Siasia, has claimed that ex-Chelsea star John Obi Mikel tried to buy his way into Nigeria’s squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, despite having refused to participate in the qualification campaign.
In a recent interview with Elegbete TV Sports—shared on YouTube this past Monday—Siasia alleged that Mikel’s representative offered him a €50,000 bribe to secure the midfielder’s spot on the Olympic roster.
The coach recalled personally urging Mikel to join the team during the qualifiers, especially since the player was struggling for minutes at Chelsea at the time, but said Mikel turned down the opportunity.
“Mikel wasn’t a starter at Chelsea then, he was on the bench. I told him we only had one game against Ghana to play – please come and help us. I said if he doesn’t come, he won’t go anywhere. But Mikel refused to come, saying he was playing in Chelsea,” Siasia stated.
“Nothing happened, we played very well, at the end of the day 0-0, we qualified,” he added, referring to the decisive goalless draw against Ghana that secured Nigeria’s place at the tournament.
Siasia claimed that Mikel expressed interest in joining the squad only after the team had secured qualification for the Beijing Olympics.
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“Going to the Olympics, Mikel wants to come and play. His agent said he would give me €50,000 so Mikel should play.“
“I said it’s not about €50,000. He didn’t play the qualifiers, so I will take out someone that qualified us and bring you in? It won’t happen. That’s why Mikel didn’t go,” the former coach said.
As of the time this report was filed, neither the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) nor John Obi Mikel had issued an official statement in response to Siasia’s allegations.
In a separate revelation in August 2024, Mikel disclosed that he personally financed the U-23 Eagles’ travel to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Speaking on The Obi One Podcast, which he hosts on YouTube, Mikel shed light on alleged corruption within the NFF. He explained that he had to cover the team’s travel expenses out of pocket to ensure their participation in the tournament.
As the team’s captain and one of the three overage players, Mikel recounted a disheartening scene at the airport, where players waited from morning until night for a flight that never arrived.
According to him, despite receiving government funds earmarked for the team’s travel, the NFF leadership failed to release the money in time—jeopardizing their Olympic campaign.
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