Good morning All
I told you it was gonna be fun, didn’t I? I’m talking of President Trump’s inauguration. You watch such things and you can only hope and wish for Nigeria. We have the human resources and raw materials – i hope one day, we can evolve into something that exemplary: but that hope is fading.
Shortly after Sunday’s defeat, Ideye tweeted – Onto the next one. And yes we should indeed move toward what’s ahead. But ill like to throw some defence at this team, just a little bit. Here on the blog, we criticize when the occasion demands it. But we also praise/defend when needs be.
Nigerians are very strange people. They’re cheering the loudest when you’re winning but when you’re not – they out their forks and torches and want to beat you to death. The football fans especially. And we see this weekly with the International Leagues. Maybe we need some reality check with our expectations.
We knew right after the draws for the Groups were made, that making it out of this Group was near impossible. In terms of structure and how clubs are run we know the Egyptian teams are heads and shoulders above us. Then add the huge gap in player quality.
Simple Question, what current Enyimba player walks into the starting XI of Al Masry or Zamalek? Maybe Ani Ozoemena. And that’s only for a place on the bench. Some will even argue that none deserves to. This is not to attack the players – this is surely on the Administrators of the Nigerian League.
We have seen the likes of Remo Stars, Enugu Rangers and Rivers United dominate the League in the recent past, but time and time again, fail to make any significant impact in the Continent. So for all we boast of, our football isn’t good enough beyond the shores of Nigeria. It’s a reality we need to come to terms with.
Enyimba lost a host of players at the start of the season. Most of which are significantly better in terms of quality compared to this present lot. I’m not creating excuses here- I’m simply asking the average Nigerian fan to be realistic with his expectations and channel his frustration in the right direction.
Every new season, the clubs start afresh. A flock of players who have had some decent showing quickly exit the clubs and the country, leaving the coaches back to square one. No continuity except with the 2 star players left in the team that no other team home or abroad wants.
This is why clubs should plan better if they want a team that will conquer the Continent. You will have to invest wholeheartedly. Look at the North African teams, players there are content to play their entire career there. For us, it is the opposite. Our players plan to spend on the average, 2 seasons before they jet out. Would you blame them?
We cannot ignore these premises and expect our teams to be world beaters when we face Continental opposition. Kanu once said he wanted to build an Enyimba team that will face and possibly beat Arsenal in the near future. He probably made this comment while under the influence of Alcohol or under duress.
Thankfully, Nigeria retained her 4 slots on the Continent after Sunday’s results. But we may not do anything significant with these slots if teams don’t plan better. What would a great Continental run mean financially for the teams? Alot. But it cannot be achieved by wishful thinking. Do you have the right structure that ensures such success for your team?
Back tomorrow
‘EnyimbaEnyi
