By Daily Sports on January 18, 2021

This is not volte-face or anything near it. That Golden Eaglets qualified for the finals of WAFU championship will not change my perspective on the status of the lame duck like team. I earlier referred to the team as a shadow of the kind of crop of past Golden Eaglets and it remains my view and stand, until I see a mobile and hungry team ready to deliver gamely.

It will also not change my outlook on the team and all it represents. The latest rally to come thus far remains more than meets the eye.  It remains a paper tiger and will not stand the test of time at larger tournaments at the World level, when the chips are down. For the team to put up such performance from the first game despite it being in the finals, leaves sour taste in the mouth. Cote d’Ivoire, the team’s conquerors’ are ready for the finals to do the Nigerian side the double.

I was not thrilled when news of the team’s qualification for the finals broke because in the first instance, there was no basis for a Nigerian team of any colour to struggle against any African team of any shade. Alas, corruption that has eaten deep into the fabrics of the equally rotten society, which has made it impossible for any sector to work and sports has become badly hit.

I don’t want to believe that it is lack of talents that has denied us clean and clear results on the field of play but rather if it is not age irregularities, it would be ill selection that has often made the country’s football, a hitherto lofty game, an ill-wind that blows no good.

Nothing has been done about it for ages and so the beat goes on. For the records, the U-17 national side is handled by ex-international Fatai Amoo and he is one coach I have followed closely during his playing days in First Football Club of Lagos and then the Green Eagles and he is known for his gentle attitude and promptness to duty. A disciplined fellow that never takes no as an answer, when the team lost to Cote d’Ivoire in the opening group match, my stomach turned and I said the coach is not to be blamed as such because everyone highly connected wants his son, relations and sundry to be fielded to play football, This is the story in any of the national teams thereby making the hands of coaches tied.

It is what they face during the national team job as NFF would hand over such definite instruction to the coach concerned hence the kind of struggle Nigerian sides undergo in tournaments. If you are not close or have your ears to the ground, you won’t know about this highly coded fraud.

I am not making allegations but saying the obvious as it affects Nigeria. Things have gone amiss a long time ago. This NFF regime did not introduce it but like every evolving scenario, the present regime has institutionalised and coined same to ‘don’t dirty’ sort of degree with glowing arrogance. No one cares. After all what is going on has become the norm and anyone crying blue murder does so at his/her peril.

The way Nigeria is, nobody cares a hoot. That has ensured steady sinking of the country without any rescue effort(s). It remains a sad commentary and except something drastic is put in place, I wonder what our fate would be in the near future.

The Golden Eaglets team whether it would cut its pound of flesh against Junior Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire in the finals would depend solely on them but fact is that it has qualified to play at the larger U-17 World Cup. Truth is that Fatai Amoo stepped up his efforts if nothing to maintain the name and career he has built over these odd years. Bowing out of a mere WAFU qualifier would negate all his efforts in the past; therefore he put his name on the line, ensuring the boys redoubled their efforts to bounce back. This columnist is not a sadist. The lads tried to rise from the dead after putting every foot wrong at the beginning, losing the first game, drawing one and winning one, hence grabbing the ticket to play in the World Cup at that level. 

Fatai Amoo knows he has much in his hands after this WAFU qualification series. This is not a championship side if we must call a spade by its name. He has to go back vividly to the drawing board if he wants to craft his name amongst the winners of that champ at the World level. Yes it is not easy judging from the environment he operates. It won’t be easy but he can stamp his feet on the ground and take responsibility instead.

When Fatai was appointed, I said without any fear or favour that since NFF reserved the U-23 team head coach to whomever, that Fatai having coached the team before and came back with Bronze is best suited to go back there. The U-20 Flying Eagles would have been it instead of dead wood; man knows man and stage managed appointment of Ladan Bosso whose time in coaching has long expired.

We saw Bosso’s performance and have you heard NFF say anything on that since? I digress.

Let’s resort to our social media handles and continue our educative, informative and entertaining trending sports topics. So keep shooting hard till next week as the struggle continues!!!

Source Daily Sports

Posted January 18, 2021

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