Renowned players agent and marketer, Friday Nwankwo-Kujah has made a strong case for the inclusion of more former ex-internationals I the running and organization of Nigerian football as well as coaching the national team, megasportsarena.com reports.
While he is delighted to see the recent appointments of two former captains, Joseph Ikpo Yobo as an assistant coach in the Super Eagles and Augustine Eguavoen as technical director of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), the well-acclaimed ‘Soccer Ambassador’ stressed that more needs to be done in that direction.
The businessman-turned-football promoter pointed out in a long essay he circulated in the media at the start of this week that the presence of former players I crucial aspects of Nigerian football would take the country back to the high pedestal it used to enjoy in years gone by.
He added that having ex-players at the helm of coaching, administration and other aspects of the round leather game in the country would go a long way towards taking Nigeria even higher than it used to enjoy in days of yore and give openings for better days ahead.
Having been close to many Eagles’ players since the days of Daniel Amokachi, Nwankwo Kanu, Austin Okocha and others in the Nigerian national team, Kujah stressed that he knows that the country has been able to achieve through its home grown talent, such that having a Franco-German coach in charge of the current squad might not be good enough.
He cited last week’s 4-4 draw with Sierra Leone in Benin City to buttress his point, with a caveat that the country’s sports administrators and top shots of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) must come out with an indigenous policy for revival of the round leather game in the country.
While also acknowledging that foreign coaches have brought glory to the Eagles in years past, Nwankwo-Kujah reckoned that it would be better to return to the Dutch tradition that was laid for the Eagles by Clemens Westerhof and Jo Bonfrere, rather than be saddled with the current French/German style of Gernot Rohr, which he believes Nigeria’s players cannot fit into.
Nwankwo-Kujah wrote at length: “As a stakeholder in Nigerian football where are the ex players of Nigeria why are you people silent why are all our national teams performing woefully destroying the records former Dutch coaches and former ex-players worked hard to make.
“In U17 we won back to back and record five times in U23 we are champions in Flying Eagles we are champions, since this current board members of NFF they are giving us the worst results Nigeria is nowhere to be found in FIFA ranking this new administrations should wake up.
“I’m not those who use this platform to just talk or criticize the national team. We should try to say the truth. I am not concern about the result 4-4, can NFF ask the foreign coach our style of play a German coach cannot achieve anything.
“In Nigeria it’s only a Dutch coach who knows the pattern and tactics to play that’s why the two former Dutch coaches won laurel for Nigeria our former players will do better than this coach. Ex-players like Daniel Amokachi, Emmanuel Amuneke, Finidi George, Peter Ejeh, Joseph Yobo just to mention a few.
“What is the essence of employing a foreign coach without a style or pattern of playing, we have young and quality players all over the world, we played Egypt same excuse, we were four goals up against which country.
“Late Stephen Okechukwu Keshi took Nigeria to Nations cup with some local and foreign players. Many criticized late Keshi then, but he won the Nations Cup, again he took us to the World Cup, we got to 2nd round.
“Yet we kept on criticize him because he is a Nigerian, Rohr took us to Nations Cup, we came third with quality players and the World Cup, out in group stage. For those who are very close to our coach Rohr and his people, we must understand that playing good football style will give you better results tomorrow.
“Lastly, I’m not criticizing I’m standing on my contributions and achievements in Nigerian football. I have worked with other NFF board members and achieved great result the glory of the Olympic Games’ gold wining team and qualifying Nigeria for the first World Cup in 1994.
“All these achievements cannot be complete without my contributions, I’m still yet to see someone that can stand and support the NFF that achieved unforgettable results in Nigeria more than me.
“I remember The best Secretary-General we had, Alhaji Sani Toro, who won Olympic gold and ‘The Transformer of Talent (MON), Fanny Amun, late Stephen Keshi, late Shaibu Amodu, late Emeka Omeruah, former minster and president of NFF, also former minster and senator of sports, Jim Nwobodo, Aminu Maigari former president of NFF and former vice-president of NFF Mike Umeh and captain of Olympic team Kanu Nwankwo.
“May the souls of The Big Boss, late Stephen Keshi and the souls of the departed continue to rest in perfect peace, amen. God bless us all in football. To the rest of Nigerians, as you read this my opinion, God bless you too. More will come after the second leg in Sierra Leone.
“I just pray our suspended protest to the National Assembly in Abuja will still hold. All ex-players should join. We already have 15 luxurious bus for the march and the mission to recover the joy that unites Nigerians. The next unifying factor for us after God is football in Nigeria.”
