Before A Match, You See Us Gathered On The Center Of The Pitch. I Was The One Praying — Oliseh

According to a video posted on Global Football Insight YouTube channel on Friday October 23, 2026, former Super Eagles player Sunday Oliseh said he was the one who led the team in prayer before matches.

He said this was the case from 1993 to 2002. He spoke about the ritual in an interview on the channel’s podcast.

The host had asked what ritual he followed before stepping onto the pitch. Oliseh asked whether the host knew that he was the one praying when the team gathered at the centre of the pitch. The host said that was news to him or her.

In his words, Sunday Oliseh said, “Are you aware that from 1993 to 2002, when I stopped playing for the Super Eagles, before a match, and you all watch television, you see us gathered together on the center of the pitch? Are you aware that I was the one who was praying? I was the one in the middle of that.

“I always did the Christian prayers, even when I was just starting up as a Super Eagles player. We had a teammate who did the Muslim prayers. So we used to like to do that. That should explain a lot to you,” he said.

Oliseh said the Christian and Muslim prayers were both part of the team’s routine. He said he began leading the Christian prayers when he was just starting out with the national team. He added that a teammate led the Muslim prayers.

Earlier in the interview, he spoke about a daily ritual he keeps wherever he is in the world. He said he makes it a point never to say anything to anybody, or do anything, without first thanking God for seeing the morning. He said he believes this would help the world too.

Oliseh said he is a Christian who believes in a one-on-one relationship with God. He said he sees God as his father. He said many things in his life have happened at the right time, and he knows they were not human.

**Watch headline quotes from (00:17:09 – 00:17:21).: