By Monsurah Olatunji
Nigeria international Victor Boniface is facing scrutiny after being photographed using his phone while driving above the speed limit.
The incident has prompted a German investigation, as Boniface was caught driving at 140 km/h on a road with a 120 km/h limit, while also seemingly checking Bayer Leverkusen’s Instagram posts, according to a report by Bild.
This latest reckless driving episode comes just two months after Boniface narrowly escaped a serious car crash following a victory over Eintracht Frankfurt, raising further concerns about his driving habits.
Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso has expressed his disapproval of the incident, emphasizing that such behavior is unacceptable.
“I don’t like it; it’s obviously not good, and of course, it’s not allowed to happen,” Alonso said in a press conference before their match against Union Berlin.
“I haven’t seen Boni yet, but he knows it’s not allowed. We have to tell him he’s not allowed to do something like this.”
Boniface, who is currently sidelined due to a thigh injury sustained during the international break, has been ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Although Alonso has not yet spoken directly to the player, the club has released an official statement confirming they are investigating the incident to address the situation appropriately.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
