Ideye: NPFL is getting worse… Nigerian clubs not ready for continental football

Brown Ideye, Super Eagles striker, says the level of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) “is getting worse”. 

The 36-year-old joined Enyimba for a second spell in the NPFL in December 2024. He returned to the league 17 years after he had played for Ocean Boys of Bayelsa.

Speaking on his experience since his return, Ideye said the Nigerian league is “not getting better” and has “a long way to go”.

The striker spoke in a chat with 54Footballx after Enyimba’s loss to Kwara United in Ilorin on Monday.

“The system is getting worse. My time at Enyimba has been wonderful but there are a lot of things in the league that need to improve,” he said.

Ideye scored for Enyimba in the club’s lone win in the group stage of the 2024/25 CAF Confederation Cup. Enyimba were the last Nigerian club on the continent, but they crashed out in the group stage with five points from a possible 18.

Ideye criticised the team’s arrangement for the continental games, adding that “Nigerians and the clubs are not ready for continental football”.

“In terms of travelling, it’s bad; in terms of feeding, it’s bad; in terms of the hotel and helping the players to relax, it’s all bad,” he said.

“Nigerians and the clubs are not ready for continental football. I feel we should put our house together before we can go play continental football instead of going there to disgrace ourselves.”