Ex-Super Eagles captain, Austin ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha, has admitted he gave Sunday Oliseh painkillers to enable him play in the 2000 African Cup of Nations final against Cameroon in Lagos.
Oliseh was almost forced to pull out of the game after aggravating a hamstring injury during their 2-0 win over South Africa in the semi-final.
The defensive midfielder had a big impact against Senegal in the quarter-final, coming off the bench to bag an assist as the Eagles came from a goal down to beat the Teranga Lions 2-1.
Recounting the final defeat to Cameroon on penalties, after full and extra time ended 2-2, Okocha told The PUNCH, “We were having a good tournament heading into the final but Sunday (Oliseh) was not fully fit to play.
“We needed him in the team for the final and also as the captain of the team, so I offered him painkillers to play.
“I gave him the painkillers because playing with him gave me and the forwards in the team more confidence to attack. It’s unfortunate that we lost the final the way we did in front of our home fans.”
