Apparently angered by the rather poor start of the Super Eagles to the Morocco 2015 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers, President General of the Nigeria Football Supporters Club, Dr. Rafiu Ladipo says no fewer than 30% of the current squad have no business being in the national team.
Ladipo told journalists in Abuja yesterday that the Nigerian national team must do all that is necessary to ensure that the country defends the AFCON trophy which she won last year in South Africa.
He also said that the results of the last two games against Congo and South Africa have shown that the technical crew have no option than to invite some other players who are regulars in their clubs so as to make the national team more competitive.
“We in Nigeria know that football is one thing that keeps us united in this country, it is one thing that gives us joy so I am using this opportunity to tell Keshi and his technical crew that they need to open up the space for other good players to come in because presently more than 30% of the players we are parading have no business in the national team.
“ Those players who are doing well in their clubs must be given the opportunity to come in. I am talking about players like Ike Uche, Haruna Lukeman and Sunday Mbah who did so well in the 2013 AFCON. Coaches should not throw away the baby with the bath water”.
According to him every good coach must go for quality players that can win matches for him because a coach is as as good as his last match no matter what he may have achieved in the past.
However, Ladipo argued that the defeat to Congo in Calabar was a combination of many factors including the raging NFF crisis as well as what he described as the lackadaisical approach of the players to the game.