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Super Eagles captain Wilfred Ndidi has dismissed claims by former Leicester City teammate Jamie Vardy that he and fellow Nigerian striker Kelechi Iheanacho relied on “juju cream” to recover from injuries during their time at the English club, explaining that the substance was simply ori, natural shea butter widely used in Nigeria.
Ndidi addressed the claim in a video shared on his Instagram page on Monday, saying the pair had jokingly misled their Leicester teammates into believing the ointment came from a Nigerian “witch doctor.”
According to the midfielder, the story was nothing more than dressing-room banter that Vardy eventually took seriously.
“It’s ori (natural shea butter), and anytime we came back, he would ask, and we’d say, ‘Oh! It’s from a witch doctor in Nigeria,'” Ndidi said with a laugh.
“And when we said, ‘Let’s use it on you,’ he always said no, even when we told him he would score more goals.”
The clarification followed comments made by Vardy during a recent episode of his Jamie Vardy’s Having a Party podcast, where the former England international recalled his years alongside Ndidi and Iheanacho at Leicester City.
Vardy claimed the Nigerian internationals would often travel briefly to Nigeria after sustaining minor injuries before returning with what he described as “a nice big tub of juju cream”, insisting it was the only ointment they allowed the club’s physiotherapist to apply.
“They used to get injured. Little knocks, then go back to Nigeria for just one day. They come back with a nice big tub of juju cream,” Vardy said.
“That was the only thing that the masseuse was allowed to apply to the injured area. They used to tell us that it had come from a Nigerian witch doctor.”
Ndidi’s explanation, however, makes clear that the product was ordinary shea butter, a traditional skincare and massage ointment commonly used across Nigeria for its soothing and moisturising properties.
Ndidi, Iheanacho and Vardy shared the Leicester City dressing room between 2017 and 2024, forming part of the squad that lifted the FA Cup and the FA Community Shield before Vardy’s departure from the club.
