International breaks during football season may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it does spark arguments when national team managers name their squad.
For fans, pundits and critics, they all feel there are some players who do not deserve their place in the squad because there are better players.
France manager Didier Deschamps has come in for criticism for inviting Olivier Giroud despite his struggle for game time at Chelsea, while Germany manager Joachim Low is under pressure to drop Manuel Neuer for Ter Stegen from Die Mancshaft line up.
This happens with all national team managers including Super Eagles Gernot Rohr. The German tactician caused a stir when he announced Viv Efosa Solomon-Otabor as a replacement for the injured Samuel Kalu in the Super Eagles squad for the highly anticipated clash against Brazil on October 13th in Singapore.
Otabor’s invitation came as a surprise to many who felt there are better players who could have been called up to replace Kalu.
Who is Otabor?
The 22-year-old was born in England to Nigerian parents and currently plays for Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia. Before moving to Eastern Europe, Otabor played for English sides like Portsmouth, Bolton Wanderers and Birmingham City where he won the young best player award in 2016.
Although he is eligible for England, he opted to play for Nigeria in 2015 and was invited to train with the country’s football Olympic team in 2015.
So, is his invitation justified?
Absolutely not, especially when you consider there are players who have performed reasonably well than him in this current campaign. The 22-year-old has played ten times for CSKA Sofia this season but has only played for the whole 90 minutes once.
In those ten appearances, he has managed just a lone assist which is dire for a winger playing in a league like the Bulgarian topflight.
In contrast, the likes of Chidera Ejike and David Okereke who should have been the perfect replacement for Kalu have both delivered better performances in a more superior league.
Ejike has been one of the stars for Heerenveen in the Dutch Eredivisie this season, scoring four goals in nine appearances for De Superfriezen. He was named the club’s young player for the month of September and would have definitely been a better replacement for Kalu than Otabor.
David Okereke is also enjoying a fine campaign for Club Brugge where he has scored four goals in 10 league appearances for the Blauw-Zwart.
Okereke and Ejike have been two of the best Nigerian players playing in Europe this campaign, and the fact their performances were overlooked for someone who is struggling to find his feet in Bulgaria raises the question if he was forced on by Rohr.
It’s a common practice in Nigeria for player’s agents to lobby NFF officials for a national team call-up and that could have been the case with Otabor.
Given Rohr’s antecedent with selection, it could be argued that the former Birmingham player was not his choice to replace Kalu, but was forced on him by NFF officials.
And it’s a shame that at a time fans are starting to fall in love with the Super Eagles again due to the emergence of talents coming through and the work Rohr has done, football administrators in the country are trying to sabotage it.
Over the past few weeks, football administrators in the country have brought shame to the country with the way they have run the country’s football.
Among some of the embarrassments, the NFF has brought upon football in the country with their irresponsibility is the reinstating of disgraced former Super Eagles assistant manager, Salisu Yusuf.
The NPFL has been on a hiatus for over four months now and the kick-off for a new season does not have a particular date. Nigeria’s Super Falcons will not be represented in the football tournament for next year’s Olympics in both the due to the incompetence and irresponsibility of Amaju Pinnick’s NFF led board.
The Super Falcons will miss the Olympics for the third successive time due to NFF’s interference with the team which led to former manager Thomas Dennerby leaving his post.
Good morning and congratulations to @thenff! Your industrial fuckery has just cost @NGSuper_Falcons a Tokyo 2020 Olympics women’s football tournament ticket. You should all be proud of yourselves.
— Babatunde Koiki (@BabatundeKoiki) October 8, 2019
Ask them how they run their women’s football department. Ask them why Thomas Dennerby was not in charge of the team. Ask them why Oparanozie was stripped of the captaincy and not invited. Ask them.
— Babatunde Koiki (@BabatundeKoiki) October 8, 2019
They are towing the same line with the Super Eagles which have been their saving grace in the past. It’s a shame that in 2019, players are still being imposed on managers.
The fact that Otabor left England at a young age for a league like the Bulgarian First League says a lot about his quality and should not have been invited.
https://twitter.com/Fastrack100/status/1180961296302444545
Although it is a friendly match and it gives the manager the chance to see new players, call up should be based on merit. Otabor has not done anything spectacular to earn the call-up and must have been invited on the directive of NFF officials.
https://twitter.com/Fastrack100/status/1181115773135282176
https://twitter.com/Fastrack100/status/1181114138107535362
https://twitter.com/Fastrack100/status/1181119857535934464
While the likes of Ejike and Okekere may still get their chances in future games, it’s disappointing to see connections taking precedence over merits in getting a call up to the Super Eagles.
