* Wants playing surfaces fixed to elevate qualities of domestic stars
Duro Ikhazuagbe
The inclusion of just three domestic-based goalkeepers in Nigeria’s provisional list of 41 players submitted by Super Eagles Head Coach, Jose Peseiro, to CAF ahead of the 2023 AFCON in Côte d’Ivoire, has been described as the fallout of bad pitches across the country.
Ebi Egbe, one of the country’s facility experts, insisted yesterday that the trend will continue under foreign coaches hired by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) until clubs in NPFL choose to do the right things by elevating their playing surfaces.
Egbe who is the CEO of Monimichele Limited, one of the best stadium turf experts in Nigeria, stressed that it will be difficult for the local players making the senior national team because of the level their talents have been reduced to by the poor surfaces they play in the domestic League.
“I swear, in the next 15 years, it will be difficult to see our local players making the senior national team as we have seen over the last couple of years,”began Egbe.
He said that it was sad that the highest scorer in the NPFL could not make the provisional list of 41 drawn up by Peseiro.
“The coaches will always rely on the foreign legions because they play on the latest surfaces in Europe thereby elevating their games. It is only an indigenous coach who is used to the bad pitches here that will look in the direction of our league players. “
Egbe said that the moment these players move to excellence pitches, their deficiencies will show. “Any wonder now that instead of our players leaving Nigeria to play in top teams like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Arsenal, Manchester City etc, we end up seeing them in other African leagues in Egypt, Sudan, and even Uganda and those who succeed to reach Europe are playing in backwaters leagues not better than what we have at home but having better facilities and remuneration.”
He counseled Nigerian ball fans to stop accusing the foreign coaches of not giving playing time to players from the domestic league. “Stop blaming the foreign coaches. There is no way our local players can make it. See the provisional list released this week. All the three players from the league here are goalkeepers.”
Egbe concluded that for the great talents in the country to reach their potentials, clubs must invest in facilities, good playing surfaces if they want to make headway in continental Inter-club competitions.
From Peseiro’s list of 41 players submitted to CAF ahead of the AFCON, Ojo Olorunleke of Enugu Rangers, Christian Nwoke of Sporting Lagos and Amas Obasgie of Bendel Insurance are the only players invited.
Along with South Africa-based Stanley Bobo Nwabali, are expected to outperform widely criticised Francis Uzoho to stand any chance of making the final list.
From the list of 41, Peseiro is expected to prune the squad to 27 by January 3. He has to remove 14 names to compose the final squad for the Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire.
