A FORMER Super Eagles player, Sunday Oliseh, has explained the reason for his disapproval of a foreigner taking over the reins of the senior Nigerian national team.
Oliseh spoke on Channels Sports on Sunday monitored by News Point Nigeria, where he insisted there were worthy home-based coaches capable of doing a better job.
”I am totally against having that role not being handed over to a Nigerian because we have qualified Nigerians who can do that job,” he said.
In January, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) appointed Eric Chelle, a French-born former Mali international, to succeed Augustine Eguavoen, who had been serving in an interim.
Since taking over, Chelle has overseen five games for the Super Eagles, winning three, drawing two, and recording 0 losses.
”When you are talking of a defensive midfield role, I was the one who brought in the young man Wilfred Ndidi. It was at the same time I brought in Alex Nwobi and Kelechi Iheanacho, and I gave them their first call-up because they had the quality to do it,” Oliseh said.
He also criticised the Nigerian team for having captains who had limited playing time in the squad.
”This I want to call an anomaly, and it started when we started having on the bench sitting captains. You can’t have that, you can’t have your captain sitting on the bench.’
”In other words, you are saying it is an assistant that is leading the team. Super Eagles’ role is the most important in Nigerian football,” he said
As to the importance of the defensive midfield role on the team, Oliseh said, ”Wilfred Ndidi has the quality to do it. But if you are going to play that role, you have to be disciplined; secondly, you have to have clear-cut instructions that are laid out.”
“That is why a tactician is very important.’
”If you are going to play that role as a central defensive midfielder, for me, it’s one of the most important roles in football. You are the umbrella of the defenders,” he added.
