Olaleye IDOWU
A few weeks after the technical director of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Augustine Eguavoen, made some interesting remarks about the absence of home-based players in the national team.
At the just-concluded Africa Cup of Nations tournament, head coach Eric Chelle did not invite a single player from the Nigeria Premier Football League, NPFL.
“I felt disappointed that we did not include some NPFL players in the AFCON squad.
“Some players in the team may not even get a minute of action, so why couldn’t we include a few players from the local league?
“At least three or four would have been better,” Eguavoen told Footy Africa.
The debate about the quota of domestic players in the Super Eagles is age-old.
For many years, there have been arguments for and against their inclusion.
“The current crop of players in the NPFL is simply inferior to the likes of Sunday MBA and Godfrey Oboabona, who won the title under the late Stephen Keshi,” Victor Oluwafemi, Content Lead at Football 411, told Newsmen
“That’s the truth.
“Since 2019, only John Obi and Ezenwa have made it to AFCON. It’s that bad.
“The NPFL isn’t among the top 10 leagues in Africa. We can barely compete on the continent.
“How do you expect such players to compete with their foreign counterparts for a spot in the squad?
“He should channel his dissatisfaction to the NFF. If the quality of our league improves, Chelle or whoever the coach is can show them much trust as Keshi and others did,” he added.
Oluwafemi also pointed out that Eguavoen, while he was in charge of the Eagles, didn’t make choosing NPFL players a priority.
He said: “In so far Eguavoen wants to play the nationalist card, his criticism isn’t constructive.
“It’s baseless on arrival.
“Coming to the public is like looking for cheap sympathy or a reason for not winning the last AFCON.
“Can he also explain to Nigerians why he only invited John Obi to join his squad for AFCON 2021?”
Since Eguavoen might be making performative statements, but is it really something for Chelle to consider?
“I think Chelle has shown some faith in the league by inviting Harcourt and others in the past, even though the team performed poorly during CHAN,” Oluwafemi said.
“He should allow Chelle to select the best for Nigeria.
“Sadly, NPFL doesn’t offer that. Not now or in a few years to come, except if the quality of football gets better.”
