Mikel Obi’s Agent Denies Siasia’s ₦91 Million Bribery Allegation, Calls It “A Forgotten Issue”

Siasia accuses Mikel Obi’s camp of offering €50,000 bribe for 2016 Olympic team spot.

Mikel’s agent denies claim, says coach has apologized privately amid fresh backlash and controversy.

The long-standing rift between Nigerian football icons John Mikel Obi and Samson Siasia took a dramatic turn this week after the former U23 coach alleged that the ex-Chelsea star attempted to bribe his way into the national team for the 2016 Rio Olympics.

In a recent interview, Siasia claimed that Mikel’s agent offered him €50,000 (approximately ₦91 million) as a bribe to secure the player’s inclusion in the Olympic squad despite not participating in the qualifiers.

“Going to the Olympics, Mikel wanted to play,” Siasia said in a conversation aired by Elegbete TV. “His agent said he would give me €50,000 so Mikel could play. I refused because he didn’t play in the qualifiers. I couldn’t remove a player who helped us qualify just to accommodate him.”

Siasia’s bombshell came just days after Mikel publicly criticized Nigerian authorities on “That Peter Crouch Podcast”, revealing he paid for the Olympic team’s logistics, including flight tickets to Brazil, when the government failed to support the players. Mikel also claimed some officials diverted funds allocated for the team, adding that influential people thought he would abandon the mission due to a lack of reimbursement.

The former Chelsea midfielder, who captained Nigeria to a bronze medal after beating Honduras 3-2 in the third-place match, said he never received a refund for the expenses.

In response to Siasia’s bribery allegation, FIFA-licensed agent John Shittu, who represents Mikel, firmly denied any wrongdoing. Speaking to The Cable, Shittu dismissed the claim as baseless and said Siasia had already reached out privately to apologize.

“It’s a forgotten issue. I don’t want to talk about it,” Shittu said. “I don’t deal with damaged people. I am one of the most respected agents in the game.”

The veteran agent also emphasized that his professional ethics do not permit such conduct, suggesting that the bribery allegation lacks credibility.

The controversy highlights deeper tensions within Nigeria’s football leadership and past Olympic preparations. At the time, the Nigerian team was marred by financial delays, with players reportedly stranded before their departure to Brazil. It was widely reported that Mikel stepped in with personal funds to save the situation, a move that earned him praise at the time but now appears to have stirred old disputes.

Siasia, who coached the U23 team to a silver medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and led the squad again in 2016, maintains that Mikel was not part of the qualifying process and, therefore, did not deserve automatic inclusion.

“You can’t come at the last minute and push someone out just because of your name or status. It’s not fair,” Siasia argued.

Shittu’s rebuttal, however, suggests he is uninterested in reliving the dispute, choosing instead to move on from the issue.

The public disagreement has stirred mixed reactions within Nigeria’s football community, with some defending Siasia’s stand on merit-based selections, while others view the bribery claim as a smear campaign against one of Nigeria’s most decorated footballers.

Despite the controversy, Mikel’s contribution to the 2016 Olympic team remains undeniable, as he captained the side to win Nigeria’s only medal at the Games.