By Sam Nnaji
There usually are varying circumstances capable of
influencing the performance and subsequently the
evaluation of a football team after a game.
Sometimes it is about the result on the day and so it
muffles up the individual performances while at
other times, it is about how they expressed themselves in exhibiting a prevailing theme or style
of play against the opposition. At other times it
could be about the quality of the opposition faced,
yet there are times it is about the off-the-pitch
factors surrounding the team such as being a
newly assembled team. It may also be for the circumstance of a new
manager who has not gotten sufficient time with
the team but there is also the issue of how much is
considered sufficient time. Hence in the gavel
coming down on Oliseh's new Super Eagles, it is
difficult to doll out a straight-jacket assessment of the team in their performances against Tanzania
and Niger Republic on last Saturday and Tuesday
respectively. But everyone can agree on the fact that after these
two games, he has not only been made aware of
how much work he needs to do, but must also
have appreciated the quantum of faith and high
expectations the Nigerian football community has
of him. The truth is, our National team has gradually become more reactive in games than proactive, we
seem not to approach games with the initiative but
rather sit back waiting to absorb whatever the
opposition has for us. If we can contain them, then
we hope that by some good fortune we get
something good out of the game. Obviously coach Oliseh has a playing style he would
love his team to play - every good coach does and
his dream would be to stamp his style on the team.
But altering the mindset of a team (ours need to be
altered) and implanting a new style is by no small
means an easy task. It requires a hands-on practical reorientation that will eat up hours and
hours on the training pitch for players to master
and build an understanding among themselves. Sadly however the foreign based pros who usually
get the lion share of the National team invitations
are unable to offer him such luxury of time seeing
their release for national team duties is guided by
FIFA regulations that permits restricted number of
days for qualifying games. Thus most of them arrive to camp two or three days to important games and
the sometimes jointed displays we see are rarely
surprising. But Oliseh can take advantage of some
of the Glo Premier League players who are more
accessible and available to him. These ones are
within reach with the right agreement with their clubs here. We did see some of them 'local' boys feature
against Tanzania and Niger and Oliseh would have
seen raw materials that with the right guidance, can
form the core of the new Eagles. FC Taraba's Usman
Mohammed so impressed against the Nigeriens that
he drew praises from the new manager. Solomon Kwambe of Warri Wolves started both games at
right back and put in a decent shift especially in the
AFCON qualifier. Chima Akas had a shaky time at left
back in the Niger game and while he tackled well,
the quality of his crosses and the indecision
whether to join in attack or sit back and defend could use some coaching and guidance. The trio of Bature Yaro, Prince Aggreh and
Ikechukwu Ezenwa did not do much in the game
they featured in but let us blame the average
performance on the fact that the team hardly had
sufficient time to be schooled on the new coach's
philosophy and there was little time to rehearse the drills till they can be executed to perfection. But
there is no mincing words in saying that the talent
is there. Our League abounds with young and
exciting footballers who can become Oliseh's spine
for success. Having been spotted at the Lekan Salami Stadium a
fortnight ago, Oliseh has shown signs that he is
open to working with the league's bright stars. The
Tunde Adenijis, the Esosa Igbinobas and the Ezekiel
Basseys are some youngsters who the new
manager can indoctrinate his system with and trust that they can deliver a new generation of Super
Eagles who bring back the glory days. A few spots
can be reserved only for the exceptional talents
from abroad who play regularly, and not some
benchwarmers in European clubs.