The Nation Newspaper

Category: Ade Ojeikere

  • Mikel is talking

    Mikel is talking

    It is a season of resolutions. Plans for the New Year are made. Many unfulfilled because man’s needs are insatiable. Those who manage to stick to their plans, end up counting their blessings. One characteristic of setting targets, which many term as resolution is that many of such plans don’t go our way. But it is better setting targets than just sitting down, expecting manna to fall from heaven. So, what are your resolutions for 2017?

    Interestingly, one reader wanted to know my thoughts on John Mikel Obi’s likely move out of Chelsea. I couldn’t offer any but promised to do so in this column. Mikel has shouted it loud and clear that he wants to play for cash. It means he wants to play for the team that offers him something higher than what he earns at Chelsea. I’m afraid Mikel won’t get any European club to offer him wages higher than what he earns now. At 29 years, there are not many teams that would splash cash on him. I would advise that he remains in Europe, knowing that he has at least five productive years to play. Mikel must face the fact that Super Eagles Manager Gernot Rohr needs him at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. This means that he must play for a European club, if he wants to compete with the big boys at the Mundial in Russia.

    It is true that Mikel has seen it all in terms of winning trophies. But he must appreciate that playing for winning teams would enhance his game rather than for strugglers in the murky relegation waters. Nigeria’s captain to the Russia 2018 World Cup should never play in the Chinese league. Russia 2018 World Cup matches should be Mikel’s last for Nigeria. He could then head for China or anywhere cash is splashed. In fact, the figures he will get after the Mundial in Russia could be higher than what he is eyeing now.

    Three European clubs appear to be in the race for Mikel’s signature. There are two Italian clubs (AC Milan and Inter Milan). Marseille of France is looking like the club that could fit Mikel in the twilight of his career. Mikel would literarily be tying Rohr’s hands if he expects to make the Nigerian side to the Mundial, after opting for the highest bidder, a Chinese side, for instance.

    The Italian sides, AC Milan and Inter, are tottering. They have been absent from the UEFA Champions League competition. It is quite insulting for Inter Milan to prefer Lucas of Liverpool ahead of Mikel. But Marseille has been around and could offer him a chance at the world’s biggest club tournament. The speculation that Juventus FC of Italy is looking for Mikel is far-fetched. The Italian side is definitely missing Pogba, who now plays for Manchester United FC of England. But I don’t think Mikel would be their best bet, especially as he hasn’t been playing since the European season began in August. Some of his former Chelsea mates who are now at Juventus may have suggested him to their management. On that score, Mikel could be a quick fix and a cheap acquisition, if Chelsea’s owner allows him to go for free when the January transfer window opens. Mikel will shine with the Old Lady side.

    Valencia don’t look like the club that Mikel should play for after his exciting career at Chelsea. Valencia is living in its past, except they change their perception of how to run the club, they won’t attract big players such as Mikel. Mikel shouldn’t join a club that would be relying on him, even if he craves for regular first team shirt. It will pay him more if he calls Rafa Benitez to get a chance to play for Newcastle FC in the second division. Benitez has trained Mikel at Chelsea and knows his strengths and weaknesses.

    A phone call from Mikel would sway Benitez. He would be glad to have the Nigerian, now that the second phase of the league beckons mid-January. Mikel must stoop to conquer. He must look at the lower leagues in England, especially teams with prospects of playing in the Barclays English Premier League next season. Mikel could whisper into Ahmed Musa’s ears that he wants to join Leicester. Rumour has it that Liverpool players in the England team have urged Klopp to pick Ox Chamberlain of Arsenal. And it is looking like a deal is on the cards. Did I hear you say players’ power? Who doesn’t want a good hand in his business? Mikel, please make the call to Musa. But like with all transfer rumours, Klopp has denied any links with Chamberlain. Hmmm! That is the way most real transfers start.

    Who says Mikel must play to win trophies? What does it matter if he plays for a club that would guarantee him a regular first team shirt? What counts, for this writer is for Mikel to consider Nigeria’s chances at the World Cup in picking his next club. Our national team captain deserve more than what Mikel is getting at Chelsea.

    Still on resolutions, another reader asked what I thought was Rivers United FC of Port Harcourt’s gain after the team’s tour of Spain. I told him that Nigerian clubs need to have youth teams with truly young players who must be secondary school students. To guarantee that they are students, the clubs must pay their fees and provide the stipends that they need to combine schooling with playing soccer. It isn’t an impossible task. These students mustn’t see themselves as salary earners yet. The students must be made to listen to motivational talks from ex-internationals, such as Adokie Amiesimaka, Segun Odegbami, Felix Owolobi, Edema Fuludu et al who combined football with academics.

    Matches must be organised for the youth teams. Such games must be played as the curtain raisers before the main Nigeria Premier League matches. With such youth matches, the fans will have something to cheer while waiting for the main fixtures. The domestic league clubs must involve the 36 states’ Ministry of Education and Abuja’s in picking boys for their teams.

    This innovation could jumpstart the process of reinventing all the moribund youth soccer competitions, with the League Management Company (LMC) bankrolling the biggest of them – the Principal Cup tournament – round the country. If the LMC seizes the initiative, it could start a data base of the players such that the body could attract some stipends from the successful ones who head for Europe in the future. This is one of the ways to stop age-cheats from playing for our national teams. It will also provide the platform to identify where our players are in the world, if their future can be accessed from the data bases collated by the LMC. With this data base, it would be impossible for John Akhimen to become Richard Eromogbe (not forgetting John Richard Akhimen Eromoigbe saga). It would also save Nigeria the likely embarrassment of being banned from age-grade competitions

    Expectedly, I was asked my views on the Super Falcons brouhaha. My response was very simple. First Lady Aisha Buhari should initiate a sports programme that will serve as the financial base to run all women soccer competitions. Mrs Buhari could also plead with the wives of the 36 governors to contribute at least N3 million into the women league body’s coffers. The girls have been performing magic since they first won the African Women Nations Cup trophy eight years ago. With a good revenue base, the women’s game can blossom to the envy of their male counterparts.

    The next step will be the First Lady, in conjunction with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), constituting a credible management team of technocrats, preferably tested economists or those with tremendous marketing skills to drive the project to attract more cash to prosecute their programmes.

    The President’s wife should ask the Sports Minister why he is averse to having veteran sportscaster Aisha Falode as the chairperson for the Women’s league. As the story goes that the office of the vice president sought Falode’s views on the Falcons/NFF/Sports Ministry bonus wahala – she is the chairperson of the women league. They urged Falode to produce a page of her thoughts on the matter. Falode obliged and the matter was resolved. Guess what? We have been told by those who attended the NFF Annual General Assembly (AGA) in Lagos, that the minister stopped the inauguration of the body, if Falode was chairperson. I have written on this issue so that we can appreciate some of the problems of the domestic league.

    Only an independent body can effectively manage cash from the aforementioned source by channeling it towards what we have now. To make it more competitive and to save cash, the country could be zoned into six, with every zone having six teams in a round-robin. Eventual zonal winners can then converge either in Abuja or Lagos to celebrate the new dawn in another round-robin where the eventual winner will be adequately rewarded to further challenge the other teams.

    I was asked my views on the Super Eagles. I slept off, snoring, not knowing where to start. I switched off my phones. I was unlucky to switch on the phones at night only for this person to say, “Ade please I need your response on Eagles.” When I told him that each member of the team gets N50,000 a day during camping, he shouted. I reminded him that these are big stars in European clubs who pay them more. He retorted: “Those clubs are in business. What do other countries give to their stars?” I told him that it was done through collective bargaining, with specified sums paid at the end of every campaign, depending on how far the team went in the competitions.

    I looked at my watch; 2.15am. I pleaded with the caller that I needed to rest for the next day’s show on Silverbird Television. He agreed and dropped his phone.

    Guess what, this particular caller called the next day after the show to continue the discussion. I promised to do this piece for his sake. What won’t these fans do for sports? Happy New Year.

  • Bad citation for coaches

    These are interesting times for the beautiful game in Nigeria. A lot has happened to show that the game belongs to the people. Indeed, the last one year has been that of mixed fortunes. In spite of that, Nigeria’s senior female team players are Africa’s champions. We can also beat our chests to say that we don’t miss out of the medals’ podium in soccer, especially if Samson Siasia is the coach. A bronze medal at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games explains why we are football giants at the U-23 level, having won gold, silver and bronze in 1996, 2008 and 2016.

    Our football has suffered several problems, with many people blaming the administrators and, sometimes, the players. True, these people (administrators and indeed the players) deserve the blames heaped on them for some of their decisions and their attitude to national team assignments. Indeed, we have made several changes at the helm of affairs of the game, with each successive change looking worse than the previous one. The reason is simple –everyone is a coach. Every Nigerian is a football expert, hence the keen interest shown by all. The game truly belongs to the people and their verdicts all the time are instructive.

    There appears to be a startling revelation about an ugly aspect of the game that has been buzzing, but many people have waved it off as one of those spurious claims by some disgruntled players who couldn’t make the mark. Many players have accused unnamed Super Eagles coaches of making monetary demands from new players before they can be invited to the senior team. When former age grade star Peter Ijeh made the claim ahead of the crucial matches before previous African Cup of Nations, I dismissed his allegations on grounds that I didn’t need to be a coach to know that the boys playing his position are better. I sneered at Ijeh’s rants as sour grapes, knowing that he had wasted his opportunities to become Nigeria’s hottest striker after the late Rashidi Yekini. The late Yekini didn’t need a pilgrimage of matches to become our best striker ever.

    But it seems this ill-wind of bribery won’t go away. This time, it is a former youth international who has blown the whistle on a yet-to-be named Super Eagles assistant coach. Emmanuel Sarki claimed he was asked to pay £1,000 to secure a Super Eagles shirt. Also kept secret is the Super Eagles coach who directed the youth player to his deputy. Sarki’s story goes like this: ”I was told to pay before I am called up; that was when I was playing in Israel. I won’t mention the name of the coach.  It was Efe Ambrose who gave me the contact of the coach after telling him of my form. I put a call across to him but he told me to speak with his assistant, who openly asked me for tips.

    “A lot of friends asked me to pay the money but the sum they were quoting was way more than what I can afford. I couldn’t and despite my fine form, I wasn’t contacted again. No regret though (because) I’m cool with Haiti, the land of my grandfather.”

    “I am comfortable with playing for Haiti. You get picked on your form, not on what you have to offer the coaches,” the Apollon Limassol forward was quoted to have said.

    It is easy for many people to say ‘so what?’ But the bigger picture is that it is a bad citation for Nigerian coaches. Little wonder those of them who have done well with our national teams in the past hardly get jobs outside Nigeria. This is a sad commentary, knowing how many foreigners come here to handle our domestic league clubs. Again, the bigger football nations where our players aspire to play won’t look in our direction if we allow these allegations continue  without asking those making them to prove their claims. Where they cannot prove them, stiff punishment should be meted out to them to serve as a deterrent to others.

    If any of these allegations is proven, those fingered in the disgraceful acts should be banned and measures put in place to avert a reoccurrence. This is the only way we can save our image before the football community.

    The President of the Nigerian Coaches Association, Bitrus Bewaring, and his secretary, Solomon Ogbeide should establish contact with Sarki and find a way of getting him to name the Super Eagles assistant coach who asked him for cash. If he refuses to cooperate with them, he should be reported to the Ethics Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), so that the body can invite Sarki to face a panel to defend his allegations. Disgruntled players shouldn’t be allowed to destroy the platforms that shot them to stardom, simply because the coaches feel strongly that they are not good enough for the country.

    Indeed, proving bribery is very difficult, especially if such an exercise isn’t a sting operation. The evidence should be such that would make the accused lose face before his interrogators, like we have seen in many celebrated sting operations. The video evidence using an undercover operative is the best option to arrest this shameful act. The Nigerian Coaches Association (NCA) can discuss this option with the security operatives as part of the attempt to save the association from this despicable act.

    Perhaps, this explains why many Nigerian coaches have not made their marks outside the country. No country will scout for our coaches when our players deride them in the media with the coaches’ body, watching in awe. Our national teams have failed monumentally in international tournaments in recent times, with many blaming the NFF, which is the quickest way out for critics. NFF chiefs must, therefore, seize this opportunity to whisper to the intelligence unit of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to quietly investigate these allegations since they are the owners of the game on behalf of the eggheads of the Federation of International Football Federations (FIFA) in Zurich. Is this not how the scams at FIFA started? Please, don’t ask me to name those fished out by such sting operations.

     

    Lessons for Mikel

    John Mikel Obi has contributed immensely to the beautiful game to make his movement out of any club, a big story. Not many players can point at a full wardrobe of medals, trophies or plaques from soccer competitions. Mikel has won everything, except the World Cups across all levels. But he can beat his chest to say he played at the FIFA U-20 World Cup finals in Holland, where he was controversially declared the second best behind Argentina’s Lionel Messi.

    Mikel’s achievements with Barclays English Premier League side Chelsea should easily get him a club anywhere in the world. He has spent close to 11 years with the Blues and his move out of the place should be celebrated not drowned in needless transfer controversies. If Chelsea’s manager Anthonio Conte feels strongly that he doesn’t need Mikel in his strategies for this season, he should invite the Nigerian to tell him. It won’t cost Conte anything if he tells another coach to recruit Mikel.

    Deep inside Mikel’s heart, he wants to remain in England. He would be looking at the logistics of playing for any club outside England and its consequences, now that he has kids to nurture. He certainly wouldn’t want to leave that responsibility to his wife. His kids deserve to see their father regularly to whisper into his ears their jokes and needs. But if Mikel doesn’t find an elite club in England, he can put a call across to Newcastle and express his desire to play again for Rafa Benitez.

    Benitez once handled Mikel at Chelsea and knows his strength and weaknesses. Playing for Newcastle now that it is a second division side is the surest way for Mikel to return to the Barclays English Premier League, if he is nursing any grudge against Chelsea next season. Indeed, it would take almost a major calamity for Newcastle not to return to the elite class next year, with the way the team is dominating others in that cadre. It is just a piece of advice, dear Mikel.

    Mikel’s case reminds me of how Petr Cech left Chelsea. Cech was not allowed to go. But Cech exploited his closeness to the owner of Chelsea to get the transfer through to rival London side, Arsenal. But for the owner’s intervention, Cech would have seen hell at Chelsea. It could be that Mikel wants to see off his deal with Chelsea until July 2017. Good, but he could adopt the Cech option by walking up to Chelsea’s owner that he wants to go in January without any transfer bottlenecks. This isn’t fair on players who gave their best playing for the Blues.

    I was excited last month when I read how Odion Ighalo pleaded with Watford FC’s manager to consider Mikel in the team. Watford’s manager waved the thought aside because transfer laws forbids such talks. I won’t be surprised if Watford comes for Mikel during the January transfer window. For me, there are lessons to be learned from Mikel’s last days at Chelsea for all our players in Europe. I hope they are taking notes.

    After 17 matches, it is apparent that Conte doesn’t need Mikel. He must move on. He needs to play for a big club, which may not match Chelsea’s status because Super Eagles manager Gernot Rohr wants him to play at the 2018 World Cup. Therefore, such fairy tale move to China or any other country where the game is a novelty, even if there is a lot of cash involved, isn’t what Mikel should opt for. No.

  • Panel: no winner for Awo Prize for Leadership

    The Obafemi Awolowo Prize for Leadership award will not be given out this year because none of the nominees met the set criteria, the award panel said yesterday.
    A statement by selection panel headed by former Commonwealth Secretary General Emeka Anyaoku, said the decision was taken after the final meeting last Thursday.
    It added that the Committee received many quality nominations “and wishes to note that the nominees are highly respected persons who have made significant impact, in various spheres of endeavour”.
    “However, it is important to reiterate that the criteria for selecting an awardee for the prize include integrity, credibility, discipline, visionary leadership, people-centred leadership, grassroots friendly policies, positive policy intervention, impact on poverty reduction/increased welfare, respect for rule of law, honesty, courage, selflessness and accountability as epitomised by Chief Obafemi Awolowo.
    “A recipient of the award is expected to substantially embody these criteria.
    “After thorough and detailed consideration, we regret to announce that we are unable to award the prize this year.
    “In lieu of the award ceremony that would have been held on March 6, next year, the Committee decided that a public lecture will be delivered on the same day by a renowned scholar familiar with the thoughts and accomplishments of the late sage. More details will be provided later.
    “In consonance with the regulations governing the award, therefore, the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation will advertise for nominations in June next year.
    “It is our hope that a suitable awardee will emerge from the process next year.”

  • Beware of Lions

    I have woken up twice this week thinking about the Indomitable Lions. Something keeps telling me that the Lions could hurt us next August in the crucial 2018 World Cup qualifier inside the Nest of Champions. My fear isn’t unfounded because the Cameroonians are shopping for players. They are scouting for players who hurt us in the past. They are also planning to plug the weaknesses in their team.

    Indeed, the Indomitable Lions won’t give their best at the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, knowing that the Super Eagles are engrossed with European clubs’ matches. They would be worried that Nigerian manager Gernot Rohr would be taking notes of their matches. And the Cameroonians would feel that they need to re-jig their Africa Cup of Nations squad if they want to shock the Nigerians in Uyo. The Cameroonian coach won’t want to parade boys who played in Gabon.

    When we have a game against the Indomitable Lions or the Black Stars of Ghana, form books are torn to pieces. It is the team that plays better that wins. Records do not matter. Indeed, I dread the Indomitable Lions and the Black Stars. This isn’t the best time to confront the Lions. They are big stage players. They know how to put host teams under pressure. They strive to score first and be defensive, most times adopting the physical approach. They can employ uncouth tactics some of which include kicking our big stars, such as Kelechi Iheanacho, Victor Moses and Alex Iwobi, out of their wits. Most times they succeed in injuring one or two of their targets. And that automatically destroys the host team’s plans and rhythm.

    Wao! These are big, rugged and tough guys. Every football game is a war. The Cameroonians’ stock in trade is to upset the bookmakers’ predictions. No smiles at all. I fear for the Super Eagles.

    Indeed, the Cameroonians have teased retiree star Eto ‘O Fils to return to the Indomitable Lions. Eto rejected the offer. But I’m sure that Eto will be in Uyo in August, with Cameroon’s President Paul Biya calling him in the interest of the nation. The request for Eto’s return came from the football federation’s chieftains, who he has disdain for. But when the president calls, the reply will be different. And that would be the impetus that the Lions would need to roar loud in Uyo. Let’s pray Eto politely rejects the offer when he speaks with the president. Eto is quite a mouthful when he steps onto the pitch. He maybe ageing but his predatory skills would trouble the Eagles. Many people haven’t forgotten what Roger Milla did when he was recalled from retirement to play for the Lions.

    I hope Rohr doesn’t dismiss Eto’s threat. He could make a surprise appearance in Uyo. Rohr needs to factor Eto’s likely return into his match plans. Many state that the game is eight months away, but the question to ask is, why are the Cameroonians preparing for it? They are going to the Africa Cup of Nations. Nigeria isn’t. Yet, the talk in Yaoundé is about the Eagles’ game. It underlines how they rate the Eagles, more so as the game is a World Cup challenge.

    The quest to get Eto back is understandable. Also, the coaches want their foreign-based defender Joel Matip in the team. Matip plays for Liverpool FC of England and the Cameroonians feel that he could cage Kelechi Iheanacho and Alex Iwobi. It is a wild dream because Matip won’t be able to cope with Iheanacho’s and Iwobi’s speed on and off the ball. Matip is too slow. The Cameroonian manager may wish to ask his Algerian counterpart what both players did to the North Africans in Uyo, despite their plans to stop them. The Eagles are no team of individuals as the Algerians found out late in Uyo. The Algerians didn’t reckon with Victor Moses, and he nailed them. So, the Cameroonians must be prepared for Oghenekaro Etebo. Did you say Etebo who? was jittery against the Algerians in Uyo. He certainly can’t muster enough courage to stop the Cameroonians.

    The Cameroonians have drawn their first two World Cup qualification matches. They know the implications of losing the Nigerian game. It would mean they will end up with 11 points, on the condition that they must win their last three games in the second round of their qualifying phase. The Cameroonians won’t want to risk that kind of adventure, knowing that the Nigerian side will follow them back to Yaoundé within four days, should they lose to Nigeria in Uyo. Beating Nigeria and Algeria in Yaoundé won’t be a piece of cake for the Indomitable Lions. It would also be a herculean task to beat Zambia’s Chipolopolo in Ndola. This scenario leaves the Indomitable Lions with only one option for the Uyo game – beat Nigeria and restore the chances of securing the sole qualification ticket.

    This is where the battle between Nigeria and Cameroon would be very interesting to watch. Fans with any history of medical problems should stay away from the game either on television or live. It would be a game of prestige and national pride. On paper, the Eagles have the players to cage the lions. But they must be properly motivated to give their best. I’ve faith in the fans in Uyo to cheer the Eagles ceaselessly. But our players mustn’t wait for the fans to galvanise them. They must seize the initiative by scoring early goals to unsettle the Cameroonians. They must work for one another, ensuring that there are fewer lapses at the rear.

    Now that the Super Falcons have resorted to protests to force the government to pay their entitlements, I hope that Eagles won’t want to emulate their female counterparts in demanding their entitlements. I have explained what we stand to gain if Nigeria qualifies for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Maybe I should restate it here.

    If the Eagles qualify for the 2018 World Cup, Nigeria would rake in $2million to prepare for the Mundial. At the group stage, each of the World Cup qualifiers will get $10million. If we qualify for the Round of 16, we will get $12 million. If we again progress to the quarter-finals, the Eagles would have fetched the country $18million. And, if consider the Nigerian spirit during challenges, it won’t be out of place to tip the Eagles for the semi-finals. A fourth place finish, which is the worst for any semi-finalist, will fetch Nigeria $25 million. The third place at the 2018 World Cup in Russia will fetch Nigeria $30 million. Runners-up get $40 million. The winner gets $50 million. If we finish third, for instance, Nigeria would have earned $10m, $12million, $18 million and $30million ($70million), not forgetting the initial $2 million to prepare for the Mundial.

    I hope that the Sports ministry and indeed Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) chieftains provided for this campaign in their 2017 budgetary estimates. It won’t also be out of place if the Sport Ministry collaborates with the NFF to organise a fundraising dinner where corporate Nigeria can rub minds with President Muhammadu Buhari. Such a forum will afford President Buhari the chance to tell the big firms’ executives what they will supporting the sporting industry, not just soccer.

    Sport isn’t leisure anymore. It is serious business, a money spinner used by countries which appreciate its power to pull the youth away from social vices, to change people’s perception of their countries, as a recreation platform for its citizens and a veritable means for its populace to improve on their health.

    Sport originates from the people through the communities with the products of such an enterprise emerging as ambassadors for the country in international competitions. All that the government does is to provide the enabling environment for the industry to thrive. Since the ultimate target of the corporate world is the citizenry, it follows therefore that sport gets the needed fillip for growth when the athletes become big stars.

    This seamless setting also ensures that only technocrats are recruited to drive the process, such that it is free of scams and controversies that could chase away the blue chip companies which are ready to provide the financial support for growth.

    Truth is, if the business of soccer thrives, those firms which cannot find the space to identify their goods and/or services with the beautiful game would shift their attention to other sports with the right followership and men who can convince the corporate world not to sulk over its inability to identify with soccer.

    Sports, such as cricket, boxing, basketball, golf and table tennis, have robust marketing initiatives which have been used to activate some of the programmes executed today. It is true that they need more, except that soccer, which ought to be the elixir for other sports, is burdened by the intrigues of failed NFF people and the tantrums of cantankerous sports ministers.

    But can we ever learn to do things right? The Nigerian way is flawed. Change should start with sports, my dear President Buhari.

  • Seed money for sports

    I love women. They have uncanny ways of pressing home their demands without qualms. Fortunately, they get their objectives. This isn’t the first time that the Super Falcons have protested. They did in South Africa. Many people were punished for instigating them. But they got their dues. If we had established structures for rewarding athletes after the infamous handshake policy by former President Olusegun Obasanjo was jettisoned, the sit-tight at Agura Hotel in Abuja by the girls wouldn’t have occurred. Some of the characters in the South Africa show-of-shame are still in this Falcons side. Is anyone, therefore, surprised?

    I’ve enjoyed the backlash in the media since the Super Falcons returned with the Africa Women Cup of Nations (AWCON) trophy for the eighth time. In the euphoria of this feat, we seem not to be interested in the fact that our victories were not as convincing as the past. This means that others have caught up with us. And we need to get the girls to play the game competitively like we see with the men’s domestic leagues and cup tournaments.

    Indeed, there have been insinuations of massive corruption at the NFF. One isn’t surprised that this protest has defied resolution because of the interest groups behind this needless controversy. However, one is excited that the Federal Government has accepted that the impasses are its fault, stressing that the prevalent global recession has affected its operation. The government, through the Minister of Information Lai Mohammed, has promised to resolve the matter. I hope that the girls can leave the hotel, release the trophy and head home with great expectation.

    Mohammed’s revelation is the vote of confidence that the sporting bodies need to generate their revenues, having been burdened by spurious allegations of profligacy that have not been proven. Such tales have driven away sponsors, more so when most sports ministers join the queue of those who make unsubstantiated claims of massive fraud in the sports sector. This is not to say there isn’t fraud in the sector. But, isn’t it often said that who alleges must prove?

    I won’t blame the girls because they are just tools used by some disgruntled people to get the government’s attention. Now that the government has spoken through its minister of information, I hope there can be peace at the Glasshouse. The women told the NFF chieftains that they won’t leave the hotel until they are paid. Was it the right thing for them to do? Well, if that is what the government needs to jerk it into taking decisions, then it is good, but it must never happen again. Our sportsmen and women need to understand the prevailing situation in the country. They should learn to wait, if it is apparent that cash wasn’t given to NFF chiefs and they didn’t pay. I feel ashamed reporting such conflicts for sports ambassadors who were treated as kings and queens in the places where they won the Nigeria shouldn’t be an exception to the rule. After all, we are the giants of Africa.

    The Buhari administration should tell Nigerians what its sports policy is for us to know if we can be tagged a sports-loving country or we join the league of smaller nations who attend international sporting competitions to fulfill all righteousness.

    There must be a human face to some of the stringent measures that this government has placed on expenditure to save the administration from these embarrassing cases. If the Buhari administration provides a N20 billion credit facility for sports and constitutes a panel of technocrats with immense marketing skills, not those with civil service orientation, the big players in the corporate world will be encouraged to contribute their quota. How much is N20 billion in foreign currencies, which is what is used to facilitate our sports ambassadors’s trips to competitions? For their efforts, the Falcons have fetched the country close to $80,000.

    If the Eagles qualify for the 2018 World Cup, Nigeria would rake in $2million to prepare for the Mundial. At the group stage, each of the World Cup qualifiers will get $10million. If we qualify for the Round of 16, we will get $12 million. If we again progress to the quarter finals, the Eagles would have fetched the country $18million. And if consider the Nigerian spirit when faced with challenges, it won’t be out of place to tip the Eagles qualify for the semi-finals. A fourth place finish, which is the worst for any semi-finalist, will fetch Nigeria $25 million. Third place at the 2018 World Cup in Russia would fetch Nigeria $30 million. Runners-up get $40 million while the winner gets $50 million.

    If we finish third at the Russia 2018 World Cup, for instance, Nigeria would have earned $10m, $12million, $18 million and $30million ($70million), not forgetting the initial $2 million to prepare for the Mundial. Remember that this mind-boggling figure not part of the N20 billion seed money which this writer is advocating for the industry. This is just one team out of 11 that the NFF is sponsoring in one sport. Indeed, one competition among others in world soccer’s calendar. And there are as many as 29 sports which, if well managed can generate cash to repay.

    I shed tears whenever I visit the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos. In other countries, governments have either sold out or lease such sporting edifices to blue-chip companies to manage. Stadia are mostly named after sports-friendly firms. And it isn’t for free. The government gives them tantalising rebates on their investments. Why can’t we imbibe this tradition instead of watching edifices like the National Stadium, Surulere decay?

    Securing a N20 billion facility will show the world that the Buhari administration understands the new trends in sports marketing. The interesting aspect of sports is that foreign investors will be falling over tone another to support our sporting teams. A classical example is the new dawn in the Super Eagles. Eagles’ kits sponsor, for instance, is Adidas, a German firm. It could attract more sponsors for various aspects of the team. Is anyone shocked that the Eagles have two friendly games secured in March 2017?  Mouth-watering sponsorships come the way of well packaged products and services. I only hope that the Sports Minister doesn’t tell us that there isn’t anything for Nigeria to gain by participating at the 2018 World Cup.

    Indeed, the firms that support top sportsmen and women, such as Usain Bolt, Serena Williams, Andy Murray and Lewis Hamilton, don’t necessarily come from their countries. It explains the dynamism in sports marketing, which this government must leverage on to save the industry and benefit from the immense human activities that could also create employment for Nigerians. Using sports to tackle the massive unemployment in the country hasn’t been exploited.

    The N20 billion seed money to thrive is expedient because we are talking about amateur sports not professionals who earn cash from their feats in major competitions. Amateurs compete for the country, whose anthem is sung. The athletes get their medal or citation of merit, depending on the mode of recording such feats. It follows therefore that the government’s money should be given to the athletes for competitions which start with qualifiers and their daily practice sessions.

    For instance, had Funke Oshionaike not attended the competition in Morocco, we won’t be talking about a Nigerian as the best table tennis player in Africa. Oshionaike attended the competition without a dime from the government. What she spent has not been repaid. Amateur athletes’ needs for competitions are the government’s concern. Most sporting countries have adopted the sports lottery schemes. We could design another format that could achieve the same results.

    Again, the Buhari administration could streamline the priority competitions that our athletes can participate in. But the flipside to this kind of decision is that it would kill such sports as golf, cricket, hockey, volleyball, basketball, swimming, tennis, table tennis, judo, karate, weightlifting, taekwondo, cycling etc, even some of these sports are big money spinners in other countries, such as America, Brazil, China, Germany, Italy, England etc.

    I hold one former sports minister responsible for our dearth of swimmers. This minister came up with a warp theory that black people are not good swimmers even when some Nigerian swimmers of yore won medals. The minister’s statement was the death knell for swimming, culminating in poor conditions of major swimming pools in most of the Federal Government-owned stadia.

    Besides, how do you tell the NFF, for instance, that has 11 national soccer squads to reduce them to five? Will the NFF pick Super Eagles, our Olympic soccer team for men, Dream Team, Golden Eaglets, Flying Eagles and beach soccer team and leave out the country’s women teams? Won’t feminists cry blue murder? What about the Super Falcons’ feat in the AWC? Or the Falconets’ incredible showing two years ago when they qualified for the Women U-17 World Cup finals?

    What would be the parameters for reducing the sports that we should partake in, if we decide to make soccer, table tennis, basketball, weightlifting and wrestling our cardinal sports? Would we be fair to such greats as late Dick Tiger (1957 Commonwealth (British Empire) Middleweight title, 1965 WBA, WBC, The Ring & Lineal Middleweight and 1966 WBA, WBC, The Ring & Lineal Light heavyweight titles), Hogan Kid Bassey (1955 Commonwealth Featherweight title and 1957 World Featherweight Title), Eddie Ndukwu Commonwealth Featherweight title 1977), Davidson Andeh (Lightweight title at the Amateur championships, 1978), Isaac Ikhouria Bronze at the Olympic Games in Munich, 1972), Nojim Maiyegun (Bronze at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 1964), Peter Konyegwachie (Silver medalist at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, 1984), if boxing isn’t listed among our priority sports?

    Is boxing a money spinner? Need I talk about all the big fights in the world? Let the government provide the seed money and hand it over to credible people to make the industry what it is elsewhere. Is anybody listening?

  • Moses, run to Barca

    The January transfer window opens in 32 days with big money expected to be splashed on players who have excelled since the new European season began in August. I’m excited that a Nigerian is the beautiful bride of European teams. Many club managers are thinking of offering Victor Moses long term contracts in the summer. Moses has earned three Man-of-the-Match diadems, playing for Chelsea at the right wing-back position, a place designed for the Nigerian by his Italian manager Antonio Conte.

    What it simply means, if Moses doesn’t understand, is that the position is his for as long as Conte remains Chelsea’s manager. I also know that Moses understands that Chelsea’s owner is notorious for sacking managers who don’t meet his expectation. It follows, therefore, that Moses should not be cajoled into extending his contract based on his form. Rather he should follow his mind and head for Barcelona next year.

    Chelsea would recruit massively in the summer, if it returns to the UEFA Champions Leagues. This means that Moses’ shirt isn’t guaranteed, even if Conte remains on board. I also don’t think that Moses will enjoy regular appearances with Chelsea now that Ivanovic is being introduced as his substitute. The right wing-back position isn’t Moses’ rightful position. My hunch tells me that Ivanovic may soon bench Moses, given the fact that it is his position. Besides,  he is bigger and stronger, but not as skilful as the Nigerian.

    I would advise Moses to head straight to Barcelona next year. In Barca, Moses will be able to express himself properly since much of the Spanish side is an embodiment of very skilful players with incredible team understanding. Besides, Barcelona’s manager Enrique will be playing Moses regularly since he is the one recruiting the Nigerian. In Chelsea Conte could be fired mid-season next year, if things go awry.

    Moses should use the remaining part of this season to master playing at the right wingback position. A vacancy exists already in that position at Barcelona, which he could easily grab, no matter who is recruited in January to man it till the end of the season. Besides, Barca is a more stable club for skilful players, such as Moses, not Chelsea without a traditional style. Barca’s tikitaka (passing game) is legendary.

    The English press has been unfair in analysing Moses’ form. Many Chelsea fans are wondering why the Nigerian’s talent couldn’t be recognised by Jose Mourinho. They have argued that Mourinho couldn’t bring out the best in Moses to command a regular shirt largely because the Portuguese likes playing big, strong and tall players with grit than smallish men with sublime skills such as Moses and Mata, even now that the Spaniard plays for Manchester United.

    A few pundits in Moruinho’s defence argued that Moses was in Liverpool, Stoke and indeed West Ham and didn’t play as well as he is doing at Chelsea under Conte. But the truth remains that Moses cannot force himself onto the pitch if the coaches feel otherwise. Conte has shown that Moses is a versatile player. He needs to play for a formidable team that relies on playing as a unit than on one player’s yeoman effort.

    It is for this reason that Moses should consider the Barcelona option, given the array of stars in the Spanish side and their pedigree in Europe. Barca is a constant fixture in big European competitions, winning trophies with aplomb.

    Wednesday’s award as the best player in the Barclays English Premier League matches for November further enhances the need for Moses to accept the Barcelona option, which offers him better challenges.

    Indeed, it has been quite a while since a Nigerian was voted the African Footballer of the Year. I feel strongly that Moses would thrill the world from September 2017, if he signs for Barcelona in the summer. Barca is always in the news. They may be tottering now, largely because Lionel Messi is injured. But the bigger picture is that Moses’ inclusion in the team would reduce the burden on the Argentine. Moses’ inclusion would give Barca the balance on the right flank that they lost when Dani Alves dumped them this season for Juventus.

    I tip Moses to be the African Footballer of the Year 2017, if he makes the move to Spain. This doesn’t mean if he remains at Chelsea he wouldn’t be crowned. The truth is that as a new recruit, Moses would be played since there is a vacuum in that position, which means he would command a regular team shirt.  I don’t think it would be the same for Moses with the Blues.

     

    National Sports

    Festival dead!

     

    In other climes, sport is business, providing jobs for millions of people. Aside the athletes who get employed, supporting staff, such as doctors, nurses, coaches, bus drivers, cleaners, dieticians etc whose roles keep the athletes in competitive mode, smile to the bank either weekly or monthly depending on the payment structure.

    The ripple effect of the aggregate functions of these personnel attracts the media and the blue chip companies which indentify their goods and services with the athletes’ sports programmes for better performances. Indeed, there is hardly any sport that isn’t a money-spinner because of the passion of those who follow the game. Lovers of specific sport keep the calendar of activities of such a game because they either want to watch it live on television or listen to commentaries on radio or head for the competition venue to satisfy their passion.

    Today, some of the richest people in the world are sportsmen and women, who serve as icons for the younger generation to emulate. Not so for Nigeria, largely because those who head the sector are clueless about the system. They create controversies to delude those who put them there that they are working. The reality dawns on them when they are sacked.

    One was therefore not shocked when athletes invaded the moribund National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos on Wednesday, protesting the absence of the hitherto biannual National Sports Festival, which is meant to discover, nurture and expose budding stars in the 774 Local Government Areas in the country.

    Who won’t do so if that is the only way to make ends meet? People identify with certain disciplines to emulate others. So, when sportsmen and women are denied the platform to exhibit their skills, it is only wise that they protest to attract the attention of the appropriate authorities. How would people train daily, yet they cannot compete? Whose duty is it to organise the National Sports Festival? What is the APC’s sports policy? Does it include creating the environment for sports to thrive? Or does the APC government see sports as just participating in international tournaments? If yes, how do the athletes prepare? Is the APC government with this idea of recruiting Nigeria- born overseas-based kids to represent us? Does the government not know that providing the enabling environment for sports will make the citizenry stay healthy? Is recreation not part of sports?

    In the past, the talents in the 774 local governments looked forward to the National Sports Festival because it afforded them the opportunity of visiting Lagos, Nigeria’s former capital which is also its business and financial engine-room. Many athletes looked forward to seeing bridges, high-rise buildings and the hustle and bustle of the Centre of Excellence, which was the official venue for the multi-sports tournament.

    Today, many talents dissipate their energy on social vices in the villages simply because the culture of organising sports competitions is dead in most of the 774 local governments. Those who organise sports tournaments do so when “one son of the soil” wants to celebrate his or her feats or remembers his or her loved ones. Such sporting competitions are not enduring. Anytime the sponsor is broke or is sacked from government, the competition dies.

    As for the state governors, they only remember sports when it is time to pick their commissioners, who most times don’t have the wherewithal to drive the industry to achieve its full potential. Not forgetting the in-fighting between the commissioners for sports and their sports councils or is it commissions in the disbursement of cash.

    The school system which used to be the hub for producing sportsmen and women is dead. Spaces which were hitherto used as playgrounds have been built up as classrooms, such that the few schools that bothered to organise sporting events hire stadia for their competitions. How did the students prepare for the events? Nigeria, we hail thee.

    The states’ ministries of education don’t have functional sports units which should provide the data base for fishing out talents. In fact, most state sports commissioners treat the sports arm of the Ministry of Education with levity. Let us not remind ourselves of the personality clashes between the two bodies’ commissioners. Little wonder the high incident of age cheating because the requisite data isn’t sought from the Ministry of Education. The simple effect is that sport is dead in the states, except in places where the governor likes or plays particular sports. Such a sport becomes the basis of supporting the game- a one-off affair.

    But how can the National Sports Festival hold when there are no Teachers Training Colleges to groom good games masters and mistresses, who would be sent to the schools to develop the talents?

    Until Sports Ministry chieftains accept the fact that it is their responsibility to organise the National Sports Festival, the multi-sports competition will – God forbid – die. Sports ministers have ceded this responsibility to governors, who use it to score cheap political points to the detriment of the competition.  It is rather strange that the sports ministry chiefs didn’t think of getting big firms to buy into the sponsorship of the festival because of its popularity. If they did, we won’t be talking about the absence of such a competition in the last four years.

    In fact, the National Sports Festival lost its significance when it was moved away from its permanent venue, the National Stadium Surulere. The rules changed, depending on what the host wanted. Key sports were cancelled if the host could not build the facilities. Poaching of renowned athletes to the host states became the norm as part of the strategy to win the games at all cost.

    Can the sports minister tell Nigerians when the next National Sports Festival will hold and where? Hello, is Solomon Dalung reading this?

     

  • Mikel’s Chelsea future

    Mikel’s Chelsea future

    A new dawn beckons for our football. But there is a condition – the star actors must avoid needless controversies, such as the one in which Super Eagles Captain John Mikel Obi debunked his manager’s claim that he was being punished for featuring in Nigeria’s 2016 Olympic Games’ silver winning squad’s games. Gernot Rohr told the international media that following his discussions with the Chelsea hierarchy inside their Stamford Bridge offices in London that Mikel’s absence from Chelsea’s pre-season exercise cost him a regular spot in the team.

    If Rohr’s claims were not what transpired between the manager and Chelsea’ chiefs, the English team’s media outlets would have been the first to debunk the story. Chelsea’s media portals would have published verbatim all that transpired between them and the Nigerian manager. This situation is typical of what the media platforms of European clubs do whenever a big story breaks about their inner workings or the exploits of their players in big competitions, such as the World Cup games or qualifiers.

    I was therefore shocked to read Mikel’s story throwing into the trash bin what the German said about his situation at Chelsea.  It is true that Mikel has the right under the Nigerian Constitution to speak on matters concerning him. But I need to remind Mikel that Chlesea’s management’s stoic silence on what they told Rohr ought to have shown that there is some element of truth in the German’s disclosure. Had Rohr not gone to England to see our players with pictures to support his presence in these clubs, one would have backed Mikel’s rebuttals.

    Mikel should have taken the claims to Rohr to hear it from the German what transpired than going to the media. Of course, when Rohr met with the Chelsea chieftains, Mikel wasn’t there. I’m sure that Chelsea chiefs made that statement; what would Rohr gain by telling lies?

    Rohr’s expose helped in justifying why Mikel, who hasn’t worn Chelsea’s shirt this season, should be in the new Super Eagles squad. Rohr reckons that if Mikel was being punished for playing for Nigeria in Rio, then he should be given the platform to stay fit, play games that would compel other European clubs to seek his signature in January 2017 and increase his bargaining power. Mikel knows that European clubs cherish having players who are their countries’ squads. So, if Rohr shuts him out of Nigeria’s games, for instance, he would have not earned European chiefs’ confidence, since he doesn’t play for the Blues.

    I’m sure Mikel won’t dare debunk his manager’s media utterances because he knows the implications on his future in the team. He should learn to be on the same page with Rohr to avoid friction. Mikel should accept the fact that he is out of Chelsea. Debunking Rohr’s statement cannot secure him a place in Chelsea. The Blues have won six consecutive matches to shoot to the top of the Barclays English Premier League table, making it impossible for Mikel to play.

    Rohr’s revelation should force Mikel to make the move out of Chelsea in January, if he hopes to revive his career. This sit-tight tendency could ruin his game because Conte wouldn’t include the Nigerian in any Chelsea squad. If Mikel is scared of losing the megabucks he earns at Chelsea, he could put in a transfer request for a loan move to any of the five big teams in England or preferably Europe. After all, Mikel’s contract with Chelsea ends in June 2017. And with the way the Super Eagles are playing, Mikel could get a bigger club, preferably in Germany, given Rohr’s contacts in European.

    A loan move to Leicester, using Ahmed Musa’s contact could be what Mikel needs to play regularly in England, if he feels that movement out of the place could scuttle some of his plans for the future. A Leicester move could allow him play in the UEFA Champions League matches so that Conte could appreciate what he has missed. Mikel could also speak with Rohr to see he can drop a word with European sides where he has friends.

     

    Siasia, respect Onigbinde please

     We need to define the way we want to play our football, using the finer qualities of the average Nigerian footballer. We need a football template that would be introduced to the youth at the grassroots, such that it would be very easy to go to any of our age grade teams and pick a replacement(s) for any position in the Super Eagles.  Nigerian football needs a style unique to us, like we see with Brazilians, Dutch, Germans, French and Spaniards.

    We could opt for the hybrid, but that initiative must come from renowned European coaches with a rich history of nurturing football nurseries. I wish Arsene Wenger were available for us. Perhaps either Harry Redknapp or Pep Guardiola would be the suitable option. I just wish they would come. No disrespect to Rohr and all that he has done to rejuvenate the hitherto wobbly Eagles.

    Our footballers are talented, but they need to be taught the rudiments of the game at a much younger level. It hurts to see Eagles coaches teach our senior players how to control the ball and what side of the foot they should hit the ball with. These are elementary stuff taught at the academy levels, which are missing in our football system. Our local league is an eyesore. The state football federations don’t exist. We only hear of them when it is time to accompany the national teams to international competitions. They hardly have syncronised football programmes.

    The game is played in the states by government-owned teams. Most of the state football federations’ chiefs lack the initiative to design programmes that would effectively engage the grassroots coaches and the players.

    A renowned European coach as our technical man would help train and retrain our coaches. It is true that Adegboye Onigbinde can man the position but he won’t earn the respect of our local coaches, some of who believe that his methods are not in sync with the modern time and that he needs to give way for the younger ones.

    Need I state how Onigbinde’s efforts have been frustrated by coaches that he even groomed as players? Nigeria is the only country where anyone can present himself as a coach and he gets the job.  No standards are set. It is unbelievable that Nigerian coaches are in Cadre C, the equivalent of primary six in coaching, in Africa.

    So, why is Samson Siasia quarrelling with Onigbinde for exposing the fact that our coaches failed a recent examination on coaching? For me, Nigerian coaches should just leave us alone. Nigerian coaches are not ready to learn. I have witnessed several coaching clinics. Nigerian coaches don’t attend them. I tried to ask some of the big ones why they didn’t participate in those courses. I was shocked to hear them say what was it that they hadn’t read in the past? Some of them described such courses as waste of time and another attempt by the organisers to get easy cash.

    I have heard Onigbinde cry over the poor rating of Nigerian coaches. The respected tactician is miffed that Nigerian coaches still rank in CAF’s Grade C (the equivalent of primary school certificate) and has taken pains to upgrade our coaches. Yet, they are not prepared to move with the times. Onigbinde has, however, blamed the NFF for foot dragging on the matter. The truth is that Onigbinde didn’t wait for any NFF for him to be eminently qualified to perform in FIFA’s and CAF’s technical matters.

    Onigbinde sir, this is the way forward. Our coaches must emulate you by upgrading their knowledge. Our coaches must know that learning is a continuum. The only way that they can be relevant is to attend courses. We are tired of their archaic tactics.

     

    Dalung’s many controversies

     

    When will Sports Minister Solomon Dalung learn to stop talking and allow his job speak for him? Can’t the minister politely refer any media person seeking his views on our sports to his assistants in the public relations office?

    From his infamous quote of United States of Nigeria to describe Samson Siasia’s wise move to take the Dream Team to Atlanta as another slave trade expedition to this new one where he stated that Nigeria should not participate at the World Cup because we won’t win the trophy, Dalung has been a major embarrassment to our dear country.

    Dalung gets excited easily. He needs to give himself a media shutout until he can speak like a true policy maker. Or does Dalung not know that the administrative head of the Sports Ministry is the Permanent Secretary, who is schooled on how to speak as a government official, not a red beret Comrade? Dalung should stay off football matters for a while. He doesn’t like the NFF chiefs, who must be thanking their stars that Gernot Rohr has been a huge success with the Eagles. Otherwise, Dalung would have recommended their trial. If the minister faces other sports the way he does with football, Nigeria would have been the centerpiece of sports, especially in the continent.

    Is Dalung saying that there are no votes for our sporting teams to attend international competitions in the Sport Ministry’s fiscal budget? Even if the NFF wants to outsource sponsorships for their programmes, the minister’s interview about the way football is run is enough to dissuade prospective sponsors. His innuendos about NFF seem to suggest that the officials have light fingers. Will any company put its cash on NFF’s programmes after reading the minister’s diatribes?

    Dalung sir, please work. Leave the talking for the trained technocrats in your ministry.

  • A clash revisited

    Dear reader, I was humbled by the kind words I received from everyone since that evening when Nigeria beat Algeria 3-1 inside the Nest of Champions Stadium in Uyo. I’m not a seer. I’m only committed to tackling sensitive issues about our sports, no matter whose ox is gored. I also strive to improve on The Nationsports’ pages based on readers’ demands. Of course, I learn everyday from your comments.

    Much of the credit for the exactness of some of the statements I made here last week rest with Victor Moses’ resolve to shame his critics. His sublime skills and goals rubbed off on the Super Eagles’ sterling outing against the Desert Foxes. Moses’ darting runs, his passes and his courage in driving the team’s success explain why he is the toast of the international media. No surprises that Moses was the tormentor-in-chief of the Desert Foxes, even though he wasn’t used as a right-wing back, the position where he has excelled playing for Chelsea in the new European season.

    What it simply means is that Moses is a versatile player. Indeed, I knew that the Algerians would be punished by Moses, if they executed their plans to cage Kelechi Iheanacho and Alex Iwobi. I’ve not stopped laughing at the Algerian manager, who has admitted that Iheanacho ruined his team with his deft runs inside the box, which accounted for the three goals that Nigeria scored. Mention must be made about the runs made by our players off the ball, which certainly have come from Rohr’s tactical savvy. Now it is exciting to watch the Eagles. The Cameroonians are in for surprises when we confront them inside the Nest of Champions Stadium in Uyo.

    The Indomitable Lions manager admits that the Eagles are hot. But he is deluding himself with the submission that he feels that the players won’t be in this form of their lives. Let’s laugh at this coach, who wishes that our players lose form. He hopes that his players’ form will improve. Dear coach, things don’t work that way. Our players are regulars in their European clubs, where they develop their verve to play for club and country. Don’t ask me how many Cameroonians are regulars.

    Interestingly, Eagles’ manager Gernot Rohr isn’t prepared to play Moses at the right-back position, preferring to comb the country and Europe for a capable person to block one of the team’s weaknesses on the right side of the defence. One must commend Moses for getting back to Rohr from Chelsea, thanking him for giving him a first team shirt.

    It also shows the relationship between the manager and his players. This is a rarity with Nigerian coaches, who tend to look down on the players as their subordinates and not partners. Nigerian coaches have no clue on how to manage the players’ egos. It is the players who go onto the pitch to implement coaches’ tactics. And if they are treated as kids, then such a coach is in soup. I hope that Nigerian coaches in this Eagles technical crew are noting some of the points that have helped Rohr transform the team in a record time. Our coaches are in a coaching school under Rohr. They must open their eyes and ears to gain knowledge from the German tactician.

    This is indeed a new dawn for our football. We are being told that the Eagles have two games against two African countries in March 2017, when the next FIFA free window opens. The Eagles will challenge the Senegalese in the second of two matches in March 2017. It simply means that Rohr and the NFF men know the importance of keeping our boys busy with matches, beyond what they exhibit in their European clubs. It also shows that the Eagles, beginning with the home-based lads and few Europe-based who are not in the main team would be kept busy with games. I only hope that Rohr is serious in his quest for right and leftwing back players for the Eagles, not forgetting that the defenders against Algeria panicked a lot.

    Those who keep throwing up goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi into the Eagles are not patriots. Akpeyi has wasted the two opportunities he got to prove his mettle. He was a jelly fish at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, leaking in goals, even though he was listed as an over-aged player.

    Last Saturday, Akpeyi’s looks showed that he needed help. He flapped the first ball delivered into the Eagles’ defence by the Algerians, as if he was a volleyball player. One would have thought that with Akpeyi’s height, picking crosses would be a piece of cake. Behold, he shuffled to every ball, clutching the ball with jittery hands and showed the Algerians that he was frightened. I almost fainted when the Algerians scored their goal. It was then it dawned on the visitors that Akpeyi wasn’t good. They hit the ball from the distance. 

    At no point in the game did Akpeyi show that he knew his job as a goalkeeper, otherwise, he would have controlled his defenders rather than stand like one waiting for a judge’s verdict in the court. One is excited that Vincent Enyeama promised to rejoin the team. In spite of that, we need to get another goalkeeper from the domestic league for the Eagles. And I won’t stop blaming the League Management Company (LMC) for not having the weekly Team of the Week chart, where the best players of each week are listed. If we had that chart, picking the best goalkeepers would be easy. It isn’t too late to embrace this idea so that the task of picking players for the national team wouldn’t be cumbersome.

    The Eagles’ wing-backs played better against the Algerians, although Kenneth Omeruo didn’t complete the game for a proper appraisal of his contributions. However, I feel strongly that if we must scout for talents to challenge those playing at the wing-backs, the search should be in the domestic league. We must start to measure how well the domestic league has improved by the number of home-based players in the Eagles XI.

    The crowd seems unwilling to watch domestic league matches because their national team idols play in Europe. I always remind the LMC of the crowd that watched games in which the late Rashidi Yekini played for Gateway FC of Abeokuta. Daniel Amokachi was mobbed at match venues. If Victor Moses, Kelechi Iheanacho and Alex Iwobi were domestic league players, all the venues where they star for any club would be jam-packed, even if Manchester United FC vs Arsenal FC’s match is played at the same time. We have players here who can do better than the Europe-based defenders, if given the opportunity to fight for shirts.

    I have read a few Nigerian coaches struggling to ascribe Rohr’s feats to luck. A few of their cronies have started needless comparisons of past eras with Rohr’s. Nigerians are unanimous in embracing Rohr’s impact with the Eagles. We all need to support Rohr by offering tips that could help him improve on what we are seeing. A coach is as good as his last game. If those coaches did well, they would still be with the Eagles. Most of them were sacked due to the team’s dwindling performance.

    The players being fielded by Rohr are Nigerians, not products of any coach. When has it become the norm for judging players as any coach’s products? What happened to those players that the coaches met in the team? This is the reason Nigerian coaches fail. They are parochial. They created divides that further destroy the unit that we are seeing in Rohr’s Eagles.  Is anyone surprised why we always have mafia groupings in the Eagles when a Nigerian coach is in charge? It should interest those making these awful comparisons to know that Nigeria is bigger than any era. As the giants of Africa, we demand more from our players and coaches. Those who failed to impress us were sacked. Let’s move on.

    The Eagles midfield lived up to its billing. Mention must be made about the apt changes made by Rohr. They galvanised the team’s play, culminating in the late minute rallies that brought the third goal and even a fourth had Ahmed Musa not failed to pull the ball out to a freer Iheanacho to score what could have been Nigeria’s fourth goal.

    It was good to know too that the Algerian manager had cause to lament his failed attempts to cage Iheanacho. It showed that Iheanacho can sacrifice self for the team. He played to the Nigerian manager’s instructions, leaving the Algerians on the lurch. The victory belongs to Nigeria.

    Our group opponents would include Moses on their marked men’s list. And I can bet it, the next revelation would be Oghenekaro Etebo, the stocky lad who shocked the Olympic audience with his instructive style of play. Etebo scored four goals in one of the Dream Team’s matches. Unfortunately, he couldn’t complete the matches for the team due to an injury. He is back to shock the Cameroonians, reminiscent of what John Etim Esin did to the Indomitable Lions in Ibadan, so many years ago. In that game, Nigeria beat Cameroon 2-0, with Esin scoring one of the goals.

    Thank God, Rohr has warned his wards not to celebrate the Algerian win, insisting that there are 12 more points to play for. What that prompting tells me is that Rohr could be eyeing an unbeaten run. Who says we cannot achieve that feat despite our initial fears when the draws were made? Bring on Cameroon for slaughter next year August. Good luck Nigeria. Up Super Eagles!

  • Eagles, this is your life

    Victor Moses owes his mates a world of duty to give his best today in Uyo against the Algerians. I imagine that Moses apologised secretly to his teammates for dodging the away tie against Zambia in Ndola last month. The manner in which Moses avoided the Chipolopolo jolted not just the coaches but the fans, who had watched him shine for his English Premier League side, Chelsea FC of England.

    It is easy for Moses to walk back into the team because we beat the Zambians at home. Had the Eagles been beaten in Ndola, Moses won’t be in Uyo. His presence therefore in today’s battle should be the elixir that the Eagles need to fly over the Desert Foxes at dusk.

    I have picked Moses out for this exercise because he appears to have the qualities needed to drive the Eagles to victory, akin to what he does at Chelsea, where his selfless displays have earned him accolades in the international media. Moses must distribute passes to his teammates who are freer to score, not shoot blindly like he did in the past for the Eagles.

    Nigerians want to celebrate from the blast of the whistle. I feel strongly that Moses is the match stick that can ignite some of the finer qualities of Kelechi Iheanacho and Alex Iwobi. If Moses plays for the team, Iheanacho could score a hat-trick. I won’t be surprised if Iwobi joins the scorers’ list. It won’t be out of place to task Moses to score goals too, only as the icing on the cake of the avalanche of goals expected from the Eagles.

    This isn’t blind optimism. Nor is it unrepentant patriotism. It is the fact because the Algerians are depleted in strength and should be drubbed with goals, if our players play to their potentials.

    Should the Eagles soar over the Desert Foxes with five goals, for instance, it would rule them out of the race for the sole ticket since such heavy defeats would affect the psyche of the Algerians, who are fanatical when supporting their team.

    If Nigeria’s flag must be hoisted in Russia in 2018, formidable sides, such as Algeria, who care visiting us with an injury-ridden side, should be battered with goals. With Algeria out of the picture, it would be quite easy for the Eagles to grab the 13th point in the return leg next year, since their fans won’t be keen on the outcome of the game. Drubbing Algeria with goals would also scare the wits out of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon, our next opponents at home next year.

    The Eagles must restore the fear factor that most teams had for them in the past by whipping this half-fit Algerian side. We must make the Nest of Champions Stadium our slaughter slab, beginning with the Algerians. Moses, give us this day with your best performance to appease many fans, who feel strongly that you shouldn’t be in this game. But since the manager decides who plays, we wish you the best and pray that you play to your full potentials for us all to celebrate. Going to Russia in 2018 is a task that must be done.

    I have enjoyed reading the concern expressed by soccer-loving Nigerians over the absence of Carl Ikeme in today’s game. What an irony of fate because the same fear was expressed when Nigeria began her failed bid for a qualification ticket to the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Tanzania.

    It was Sunday Oliseh’s first game against the Taifa Stars, with legendary goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama out of the squad. Many people panicked. I remember telling those who expressed fear about Ikeme’s ability to hold the fort in Enyeama’s absence that he was the reserve goalkeeper for the Eagles at the Africa Cup of Na tions hosted by Ghana in 2008. Ikeme was the Man-of-the-Match. As they say, the rest is history. Ikeme was also spectacular against the Zambians in Ndola.

    The figure to snatch the sole qualification ticket is either 12 or 13 points. And having a good goalkeeper makes the task easy, once the strikers are efficient in scoring goals. Eagles should aim at beating the Algerians with a margin of four goals, knowing that Cameroonians are home against the Zambians. Goals could decide the eventual winner of the group, if two teams tie on points at the top of the table.

    Sadly, the League Management Company (LMC) has cast an indulgent eye on the critical issue of naming the best players per week in what is globally known at Team of the Week. If the LMC had this rating chart in its 38-week league competition, Coach Rohr would have looked at it. He could also have asked for the match tapes to pick the man to replace Ikeme. We must learn how to replace foreign-based players with our homegrown lads, if we want to encourage them to play here.

    Sources in the team’s camp said that Daniel Akpeyi could be selected ahead of Dele Alampasu. But what I know from foreign coaches is that they like to see players perform during training to make their decisions. And with the way those who saw the game between the possible and the probables are singing Alampasu’s praises, I won’t be surprised if he is picked ahead of Akpeyi.

    It is easy for cynics to talk about Alampasu’s lack of experience. But I differ here because Alampasu has been incredible playing for his Portuguese third division side. Goalkeepers don’t attract quick contracts from European clubs, like strikers, midfielders and defenders. So, if Alampasu can play regularly for his Portuguese side, I don’t see how the Algerians would rattle him. Not with his outstanding performance with the World Cup winning Golden Eaglets.

    I saw the Eagles defence in Ndola and wasn’t convinced that Musa Mohammed would have been worse off than Wilfred Ndidi who played at the right back. Not only was Ndidi unable to stop his opponents, he lacked the vision to locate his team mates with good passes, preferring to hit the ball aimlessly into the skies.

    I understood why Rohr played midfielder Ndidi ahead of Mohammed in the Zambian game. The German wasn’t comfortable with the fact that Mohammed wasn’t playing regularly for his Turkish side. Good decision. But it is expedient that the coach has done a recant. I hope his decision is right this time. No excuses, dear Rohr.

    I was excited when Rohr recalled Mohammed in spite of his playing few matches for his Turkish side. Mohammed is a natural right back who understands the rudiments of playing in that position. He marks his opponents closely and he is comfortable joining the team’s attack, just as he knows that he must fall back to defend when his team loses the ball.

    The Eagles defence in Ndola panicked under pressure. Goalkeeper Ikeme’s brilliance hid the defenders’ mistakes. Our wingers must fall back to help the defenders. Kenneth Omeruo panics, largely because he wants to be stylish, only to lose the ball due to lack of concentration. Rohr has the option of pairing Troost Ekong with Leon Balogun, if he is fit. But is a half fit Balogun better than Omeruo? I don’t think that the coach should parade any unfit player. Unforced changes occasioned by fielding any player with injury worries before the game would be a monumental disaster. Balogun appears not to be 100 per cent fit. Eagles’ defence needs a leader to direct others on what to do in Ikeme’s absence.

    I want to see what Moses and Iwobi will do when we lose the ball. Arsenal’s manager Arsene Wenger has repeatedly charged Iwobi to fall back to mark. Moses’ biggest edge over his competitors at Chelsea is his ability to fall back when Chelsea is under pressure and also join the attacking onslaughts on the counter.

    I share in Mikel’s warning that they confront the Algerians with caution. I also identify with his charge to the players that they must score goals to guarantee the result that we desire. Injuries have disrupted the plans of both managers. But the effect is more with the Algerians. And it helps our cause to drub them with goals. The midfield of Ogenyi Onazi, Mikel, Iwobi and Iheanacho look like one to deliver the goals, if they pass the ball to the freest teammate to tuck the ball inside the net.

    The pertinent question to ask the Eagles manager is where he hopes to play Ogenekaro Etebo today? Etebo is strong, fast and has the knack for scoring goals. He shoots well and I look forward to seeing how Rohr will pair him with Iheanacho. What happens to Ahmed Musa, Brown Ideye, Odion Ighalo and Moses Simon, who held the Eagles’ attacking positions? Rohr, I don’t envy you.

    Like the Zambians said before the October 9 game in Ndola, the Algerian manager, Georges Leekens, has told his boys to mark out Iwobi and Iheanacho, if they hope to leave the Nest of Champions Stadium, Uyo unscathed.

    Leekens said: “We have found out the two important players in Nigeria’s team; they are Iwobi and Iheanacho. In their tight spaces, their teammates are always looking for them. They are also good at running behind unnoticed. The key is to deny them access to the ball, as whichever formation Nigeria plays, they are key, not even their captain. Stopping Iwobi and Iheanacho will neutralise Nigeria’s complex formation.”

    Such mind games won’t shock Rohr, nor would it affect his strategies today, knowing what to expect from the Algerians. Ninety minutes can be short if goal-scoring chances are frittered away. And such missed chances return to hurt such wasteful teams. Indeed, goals scored galvanise the fans to root for such winning teams. They want to see goals scored and quickly too so they can beat their chests to say: “I said so.”

    Will Rohr hand Iheanacho the task of scoring the goals? Or will he evolve a scoring template that will make the scorers be those who can free themselves from their markers? Or will one player seize the day like Nwankwo Kanu and Austin Okocha did in the past?

    Our players owe Nigerians this victory, especially as the country will be missing out of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations holding in Gabon. Incidentally CAF has raised the winners’ prize to $4 million. Many Nigerians are still ruing Nigeria’s absence from the Africa Cup of Nations. Give us this day, dear Eagles. Up Nigeria!

  • A word for Dalung

    A word for Dalung

    Sports Minister Solomon Dalung apparently enjoys hearing his own voice which translates to doublespeak on matters concerning the industry. He is quick in reminding us that he isn’t a football minister, yet nothing good can come out of football, if he isn’t handling it. Dalung negotiates all football deals. If he doesn’t know about it, it won’t happen. He shunned church services on Sundays to beg President Muhammadu Buhari to release cash for the Super Eagles. This kind minister sef!

    Would it, therefore, shock Dalung to hear that it cost the Table Tennis Federation less than $19,000 to prosecute the African Championships where Nigeria emerged champions in the women singles, winners of the male doubles event and runners-up in the men’s singles and mixed doubles? Nigeria was also runners-up in the male team event. Sir, Super Eagles are a distant 11th in Africa, in spite of your expert intervention and interest. Sir, $19,000 is less than what we paid four bench-warming Eagles players for beating Tanzania in a meaningless last game of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in Uyo.

    It will interest Dalung to know that Nigeria star Aruna Quadri is number 25 in the world. Yet the minister’s cherished Eagles are 60th. Shouldn’t these facts challenge the minister to pay more attention to the game like he does to soccer? Or should I enumerate Segun Toriola’s table tennis exploits? Shortly before the Olympics, Oshonaike cried blue murder over the ministry’s neglect of the team. She was stampeded to do a retraction; she would have been dropped from participating at the Rio Olympic Games, if she didn’t. Nothing changed. Oshonaike repeated everything she said before the Olympics when she got to Morocco.

    Stories of how other sporting federations don’t attend key competitions, including qualifiers for the Olympics, are legendary. But the minister couldn’t be bothered for as long as it isn’t football. Need I waste space to enumerate instances where Nigeria was absent from competitions because of lack of entry visas?

    Is it not one of the duties of the ministry to sponsor teams which qualify for international competitions? At these world events, Nigeria’s flag is hoisted, her national anthem sung and the medals’ table has the country’s name, not that of the players. So sir, why can’t the ministry fund their trips? What did the minister do for the table tennis squad when the news came that only Funke Oshonaike was in Morocco to represent Nigeria in the female events? If we had our female players there, they would have finished runners-up in the singles and doubles events at the worst – that is if they don’t win some of the events, like Oshonaike did in the singles?

    Why didn’t the minister forgo going to church on Sunday to appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to release the cash the ping pongers needed to participate in the competition, like he did before Nigeria’s last game against Zambia in Ndola? We saw how the minister headed for Atlanta to pay the footballers their dues. We also saw how the minister personally supervised the payment of our contingent in Rio and only recently in Zambia. This wouldn’t be the first time that the table tennis contingent would attend competitions as orphans. They virtually paid their way to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. The pair of Oshonaike and Segun Toriola wanted to address a press conference in Rio to announce their retirement from the game because of this and other reasons. But their federation president Enitan Oshodi prevailed on them not to retire but to help him nurture the younger ones he was introducing to the game. What a genius Oshodi has turned out to be, considering what Oshonaike achieved in Morocco last week by becoming the best female table tennis player in Africa at 42.

    What is clear to us now is that Nigeria doesn’t have a sports calendar, where the minister can plan how funds should be disbursed to contingents heading for international competitions beyond what Dalung and his men read in the media on football. Indeed, it is the duty of the federation to organise tournaments to discover, nurture and expose those discovered to bigger competitions. If there is one federation that has made its mark in terms of organising competitions funded by the corporate world, it is the table tennis federation.

    Dalung wouldn’t say that the table tennis federation’s chieftains have not done their beat like he does with football. He must therefore apologise to the players, their officials and the coaches for the humiliation that he has subjected them to since he became minister, like he did to the footballers in Rio.

    Had Nigeria organised an Olympic Games’ fundraising event before the multisport event in Rio, there would still have been cash left for the table tennis contingent. Let me inform the minister that our players earned points which would help them to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games from the tournament in Morocco. This is the hallmark of sports- forward looking and highly dynamic. It has such terminologies like wild card meant for borderline players and achievers in the games. What it also means is that there would be a lot of competitions leading to bigger ones like the Olympics.

    Now that the table tennis, basketball and boxing federations’ chieftains have shown that they can prosecute their programmes with corporate sponsorship, it behooves on the minister to make these three sports pivotal in our quest to excel at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. It should start today. After all, the three sports were at the Rio Olympics.

    It isn’t enough for the minister to doff his hat for Oshodi. Rather, the minister should sit with him to see how past sponsors of the game can return, with assurances that their cash won’t be misappropriated, now that they have credible members.

    We can use table tennis, basketball and boxing (the Lagos Boxing Hall of Fame project) for the pilot schemes to lure the corporate world to support sports. Subventions from the government to these three bodies could be increased. It could also include not sending cash to non-functional federations, which should kick their bumps to start their programmes.

    The Algerians are talking

    The media are awash with quotes from the Algerians promising the Super Eagles a tough time in Uyo next Saturday. Such mind games help the fans to storm the stadium to watch the match. They have acknowledged the depth-in-strength of our stars just as they think we are beatable inside the Nest of Champions Stadium.

    We aren’t expecting the Algerians to clap for us in Uyo. It is for this reason that we plead with our players to report to the team’s Abuja camp, so that the coaches would have more days to prepare them for the tie.

    This idea of our players sneaking into Nigeria, only to report to camp two days to the game is unacceptable. They were granted permission to head straight to the camp, not their homes. Thank God the coaches have asked them to report in Abuja. Surprised? The players lied about connecting flights from Lagos to Uyo, which forced them to report late. I wonder what they would tell the coaches now. They could either fly straight to Abuja from Europe or to Lagos. The flights that take off to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) from Lagos are uncountable.

    Again, we need to plead with our players not to fill the hotel rooms with their guests who distract them. They don’t accommodate guests in the hotels where their European clubs camp. Why do they exhibit such attitude here? Our players should be told that Nigeria’s flag must be hoisted in Russia in 2018. We have the players to help achieve that objective. Anyone who isn’t ready to play by the camp rules can excuse us.

    Going for World Cup tournaments should be our birthright in Africa. It should be a stroll in the park, given our players’ exploits in Europe and the Diaspora.

    Ambode’s bull’s eye

    Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s decision to open the gates at the Teslim Balogun Stadium was a bull’s eye shot. It showed that the governor understood the essence of such a cup final.

    Large turnout of spectators at the stands helps the corporate world to identify their products and services with such human activities. The bill boards and the inner perimeters of the playing pitch should have advertorials that would further convince the big companies to advertise, knowing that for 90 minutes they would enjoy international attention in the media.

    Corporate firms always ask what is in it for them if they splash their cash. I’m excited that one of the teams (IfeanyiUbah FC) would be wearing West Ham FC of England’s colours as enshrined in the deal struck by the two parties. I wish Nasarawa FC players could also be clad in a Nigerian firm’s shirt. It could have also formed a talking point for the neutrals at the stands in deciding which of the two teams to support.

    May the better side win the trophy and represent us well at the continental level next year. Take a bow, Akinwunmi Ambode for the wisdom in throwing open the gates at the stadium. Globally, the country’s FA Cup games are the biggest and the oldest. The people cherish watching them because of their tendency for upsets. It is in the FA Cup that minnows shock the giants. And Nigeria’s FA Cup game between Nasarawa FC and IfeanyiUbah FC epitomises this.

    Ambode’s decision should propel the NFF to pick good referees for the game and ensure that the television coverage is world class, such that viewers at home are shown the fans celebrating at the stands, not just focusing on the personalities at the State Box.

    The NFF security committee members must ensure that the gates are locked once the stadium is full. Latecomers can be encouraged to head for the National Stadium, Surulere complex, which is opposite the Teslim Balogun Stadium to watch big screens inside the premises. Effort must be made to ensure that the gates are flung open with 20 minutes to the end of the game to avoid any stampede.

    Thank God the two teams are not the traditional ones with immense followership. So, their fans won’t be fanatical. They also won’t cause any confusion when either of them loses the trophy at dusk today. It is a breath of fresh air having new teams in the finals. I hope that they give the fans the value for their money.