By Augustine Kalu on April 7, 2017

Super Eagles’ Technical Adviser, Gernot Rohr, has dismissed Nigerian Professional Football Players as lacking in quality to be considered for national team duties.

According to the Franco-German tactician, there is no basis for the clamour by some stakeholders for some home based players to join the national team considering the quality of players in the local league.

He is of the view that the league is not good enough to produce the type of players that will elicit the technical crew to invite them citing the crashing of two of the country’s representatives in this year’s CAF Confederation Cup competition, Wikki Tourists and FC Ifeanyi Ubah as reason to believe that the league is not up to standard to produce quality players.

Rohr maintained that the standard of the local league is the reason why the Nigerian league champions, Enugu Rangers and their runners up, River United could not go beyond the 2nd round of matches in this year’s CAF Champions League.

Rohr made his feeling known while fielding in questions from journalists after Eagles’ friendly game against the Teranga Lions of Senegal in London a fortnight ago.

“I think that there is no basis for the clamour for the home-based players to be injected into the present Super Eagles’ team reason being that they don’t have the quality and capacity to be part of the team at the moment unless in the future,” Rohr stated.

“Moreover, if you check our opponents, the Teranga Lions of Senegal you will not find one single home based player in their squad that does not mean that they don’t have players back home.

“The truth of the matter is that this is highly technical and tactical game, and I am of the view that the present home based players don’t have what it takes to fit into this type of game.

“As for me, I think that the league as it is at the moment can’t produce the right calibre of players for national team duties. Take for instance, the two clubs that represented the country in CAF Cup, Wikki Tourists and FC Ifeanyi Ubah, they could not go beyond the preliminary stage of the competition.

“Again, in CAF Champions League, league champions; Enugu Rangers and Rivers United were demoted to the lower continental competition, the CAF Confederation Cup competition. They couldn’t make it to the group stage of the competition.

“My take is, if they really want to be a part of the Super Eagles, they should go to Africa Nations Championship (CHAN) and prove themselves. Then we will know what to do but for now, it is not feasible,” Rohr declared.

Meanwhile, the Franco German tactician has expressed dismay over the bench warming role of many Eagles’ players in their various clubs saying it is not healthy for the national team. He cited Manchester City youngster, Kelechi Iheanacho, Arsenal’s Alex Iwobi and Ahmed Musa of Leicester City as examples.

All these people mentioned by Rohr have not been playing for their clubs in most part of this season due to poor run of form.

Victor Moses who has been fantastic for his club and country has been nursing an injury which has kept him out of Chelsea games for almost a month now. His absence has impacted negatively on the club and Chelsea Manager, Antonio Conte has to voice it out at the weekend after the Blues suffered 2-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace.

•Photo shows Super Eagles’ Technical Adviser, Gernot Rohr. 

Source Daily Sports

Posted April 7, 2017

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