Will Victor Boniface now step up for Super Eagles in Osimhen’s absence?

At the weekend, the 23-year-old Victor Boniface scored his sixth goal of the season for Bayer Leverkusen against Kiel in the German Bundesliga.

He even had another effort chalked off for offside.

This was coming just days after he fired his first-ever goal in the UEFA Champions League, which proved to be the winner against AC Milan.

Victor Boniface scores first Champions League goal vs AC Milan

He will therefore fly into Uyo with his confidence sky-high amid the expectations that he has yet another chance to step up as the arrow head of the Super Eagles in the absence of the injured Victor Osimhen.

Last month, he failed to do so against both Benin and Rwanda.

Despite a disappointing showing against Benin in Uyo, coach Augustine Eguavoen stuck by him to start against Rwanda in Kigali.

‘Boni’ responded with an improved display, but he was unlucky not to score his first goal for the Super Eagles as he saw a shot come off the crossbar and the goalkeeper pulled off a point-blank save with the striker through on goal.

Should the Super Eagles play to his strength or should he be the one to adapt to the style of the national team?

The midfielder-turned-striker has proved he knows his way to goal, from Norwegian champions Bodo/Glimt to Union St.Gilloise in Belgium and now with history-making Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.

Victor Boniface (right) rejoices with Osimhen in Eagles colours

How has Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso brought out the best and the most importantly the goals from Victor Boniface?

The Bundesliga champions usually play a 3-4-3 formation with Victor Boniface the head of the strike force flanked by two roving forwards as well as two other wing backs.

Because goals is the name of the game, Eguavoen could do well to reproduce this in the Super Eagles with Ademola Lookman and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru the roving forwards along with the usual wing backs Ola Aina and Bruno Onyemaechi.

This would mean Alex Iwobi is consigned to the bench, while Wilfred Ndidi gets additional help in defensive midfield either Raphael Onyedika or Alhassan Yusuf.

It would be recalled that Ademola Lookman also struggled to find his feet in the Super Eagles when he was played as a winger.

He has since become one of the first games on the Super Eagles starting XI because he is now in his element as a second striker, the role he also plays for his Italian club Atalanta BC.

Like ‘Mola’, ‘Boni’ is one of Nigeria’s most potent attacking forces and the Super Eagles ought to play to his strength for him to reproduce the goals and performances he delivers week in, week out for the German champions.