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Segun Odegbami |
Five months ago, fortune smiled on the team. At the African Cup of Nations in Cote D’Ivoire, against all odds and with plenty of luck, playing a mostly pressure-laden defensive style of play that ‘killed’ six Nigerians, the team got to the finals before capitulating to the home-team that they had beaten in the first round.
Nigerians were so appreciative of that brief spell of
success that brought joy and relief from the hardship of life that the
government lavished on the team rewards and awards unheard of in the history of
football in the world.
Ironically, the foreign coach was so ‘good’ that Nigeria did
not renew his contract. Of course, everything considered, everyone knew Jose
Paseiro was not good enough. Yet, in what many people still consider a set-up
designed to fail, they settled for his assistant, a Nigerian.
After only two games with Finidi George in charge, the
team’s fortunes have plummeted and have set off a chain of reactions that have
the strength of a volcano to consume Nigerian football if not handled
carefully.
Last Thursday, the Executive Committee of the Nigerian
Football Federation, NFF, rose from its emergency meeting, and limped back to
its previous vomit.
With threats hanging over the board like the Sword of
Damocles, the board decided it will immediately embark on a search for a new
foreign coach and keep Finidi as his assistant again in the technical team. In
addition to that, they will heed to wise counsel and look into amending the
constitution of the NFF to include some new stakeholders as advised by the
government one year ago.
All of these plus a few other matters, of course, are as a
result of the shameful performance and loss to Benin Republic last Monday. It
shattered the camel’s back.
Indeed, it was the most humiliating football match. The
Super Eagles not only failed to win, they played without spirit, like ‘school
boys’ on a vacation. It was a massive dent to the country’s image and
reputation as a giant in African football. The result of that match left the
public baying for blood.
The federal government was going to wield the big stick. The
Minister for Sports fired the first salvo by requesting explanation from the
NFF. Till now, huge threats still hang precariously over the board.
I am in my observatory high up in the hills of Wasimi. I am
trying to work it all out and understand the motivations for the NFF decisions
tumbling down accompanied by many begging questions.
What is the nature of foreign coach this time around?
Another journey-man coach? Or a ‘world-class coach as many analysts demand?
What is the definition of a world-class coach? Who in that category is
available and willing? Who will pay their humongous wages?
What will happen to all of Finidi George’s hired technical
assistants?
And so on and so forth. Questions, all begging for answers.
However, whilst waiting for the details of implementation of
the NFF’s decisions, I shall share a few random reactions of the public on my
platform to the match against Benin Republic last Monday night. They make
interesting reading. One or two may even be in support of the decisions of the
NFF.
I reproduce them here, unedited.
Opeyemi Ajala
Those opposed to indigenous coaches will gleefully appoint a
Lagerback who failed to qualify Sweden but would be eager to sack Amodu that
qualified the Eagles.
Mancini won the Euros but fell to Macedonia
John Mastoroudes
Segun, I cannot believe we lost to Benin.
It’s as if I was afraid that this might happen when I sent
my last message to you!
I am all for a foreign coach, BUT A BIG NAME, who can
inspire our selected players, because in our case it’s all about psychology.
If NFA cannot afford it, many well-to-do Nigerians, I am
sure, will be willing to sponsor the salary for at least 3 years. This is my
personal view.
I have nothing against Finidi whom I respect as a great
footballer.
Toyin Imevbere
I’m still too “pissed off”. Whenever I flash back on that
embarrassing match, it looks to me like the match was ‘sold’. There was
definitely no urge to win on the part of the Eagles.
I’m not happy at all. My son gave up on them. He went to
sleep and said he did not want anyone to give him hypertension jare.
Finidi is too soft to handle the national team.
Prof. Seun Omotayo
I have spoken about the need for psychological management of
the Super Eagles players. The game is nothing but a mind-game at all levels,
including telepathic connections.
Dapo Oguntoyinbo
Segun, we are all saddened by the loss of the Super Eagles
to Benin. Finidi may have underrated them. How could he go to the match without
his key players: Ekong, Osimhen, etc? In addition, I do not think the players
spent enough time together before going for the match. It was a great blunder
by Finidi and will be difficult for him to recover from.
Now, everyone is asking for him to be axed. As a new coach,
he should have realised that his first matches would be a make or mar affair.
All of us who supported the choice of a Nigerian Coach are now licking our
wounds !!!
Godwin Akhigbe
NFF wants to hire a foreign coach to boss Finidi George. It
reminds me of what Taju Disu said: that the football body will mess Finidi up
like all other ex-internationals who have handled the team. The Eagles refused
to play for Finidi.
Omotayo Olanrewaju
The search by NFF for a foreign coach is unfortunate and
ill-advised. The solution is not replacing Finidi George but about ensuring the
application of Sports Coaching Science and Performance Optimization strategies.
NFF should support the Finidi-led Technical crew rather than going on another
wasteful quest for a Foreign Coach at this point of our Football Development in
Nigeria.
NFF should NOT crucify Finidi for the current performance of
the Super Eagles, but should rather ensure the adequacy of his back-room staff
which is suspect, a situation and concern that I pointed out on a television
program about three weeks ago. Who is Finidi’s Match Analyst?Who is Finidi’s
Sports Psychologist? Who is Finidi’s Exercise Physiologist etc? I use this
opportunity to reiterate my call for the need for all Sports outfits across
categories to be put in place as the SPORTS MEDICINE TEAM.
Kalima
I watched the team. There was no hunger, no thirst, and no
leader on the pitch. The captain spoke more with the coach than with his fellow
players.
The players have individual skills that can be harnessed
with humility. Someone must do the dirty job on the pitch. The mid-field was
porous.
Yakubu Mohammed
I am a patriot and I want us to be in the USA, Mexico and
Canada, but nothing so far has fired my patriotism.
Patrick Olusegun Odegbami known as Segun Odegbami, is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a forward.
Odegbami won 46 caps and scored 23 goals for the Nigeria national team which he guided to its first Africa Cup of Nations title at the 1980 tournament in his homeland. Nicknamed Mathematical, he was famous for his skill on the ball, speed and precision of his crosses from the right wing.
He played for IICC Shooting Stars of Ibadan his entire career, from 1970 to 1984. His last game was the 1984 African Champions Cup final defeat to Zamalek of Egypt. The original source of the nickname “Mathematical” was because Segun Odegbami attended and graduated from Nigeria’s premier technical institution; The Polytechnic, Ibadan where he studied engineering.