Adekunle Olopade refereeing criticism follows Super Eagles loss to Morocco as he accuses officials and CAF of denying Nigeria a fair result
Reality television personality Adekunle Olopade on Thursday criticised the officiating in Nigeria’s Africa Cup of Nations semi-final loss to Morocco, accusing match referee Daniel Laryea of Ghana of denying the Super Eagles a fair chance of victory.
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Adekunle Olopade made the remarks in a post on X, formerly Twitter, following Nigeria’s defeat on penalties after a goalless draw in regulation time.
The television star said responsibility for the loss should not be placed solely on the Nigerian players, arguing that questionable refereeing decisions altered the course of the match.
Adekunle Olopade refereeing criticism focused on several incidents, including a yellow card issued to defender Calvin Bassey and what he described as repeated unpunished fouls by Moroccan players.
“The game was not supposed to get to penalties,” Olopade wrote.
“The referee stopped our momentum, ignored clear fouls on Nigerian players and showed obvious favouritism.”
Olopade said Nigeria dominated large parts of the match and created more chances, insisting the team was in its best form in recent months.
While he described winger Samuel Chukwueze’s performance as poor, he warned against reducing the entire contest to the penalty shootout alone.
The reality TV star also criticised the Confederation of African Football for what he called silence over repeated refereeing controversies.
“CAF should not be quiet about this,” he said, adding that the match “felt like Nigeria against the whole of Africa.”
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The comments have sparked renewed debate among fans and analysts about officiating standards at the tournament, with many calling for stronger oversight and accountability from football authorities.
Peculiar Adirika is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering news, business, and public affairs.
