THE DEBATE: Who Should Make the Eagles' Team?

June 30, 2020 -- Today, I present two opposing sides of the debate on who should be or not be the  FOCUS of selection by the Nigerian national team. This is not about who is eligible to play for Nigeria because that has already been determined by FIFA's edict. Instead, the debate is who ought to be selected by Nigerian coaches for the country to have an optimal chance in both Africa and the world.

The Focus Should be on Selecting ONLY European-based Players

It is clear that since the 1990s, Nigeria's best players are based oversea, specifically Europe. This makes logical sense given that players seek the best compensation for their labor and it is a fact that such compensation, at the moment, is possible mostly in Europe. It is not in Nigeria as was the case up until the 1980s. The world has changed, indeed. Importantly and additionally, the eligibility rules set by FIFA gives Nigeria access to to players born to Nigerian parents in Europe.

If you think about Nigeria's greatest moment up to date you are more likely to cite the 1994 team that won the Africa Cup and went on to be ranked as high as #5 in the world. Notably, in the same year Nigeria came within two minutes of reaching the quarter finals of the World Cup, an achievement that has continued to elude the country. Although Nigeria has failed to reach those dizzying heights since that time, there remains access to the types of players that made those accomplishments possible. Importantly, there is even better access today. There are numerous players born to Nigerian parents now eligible and willing to put on the famous green and white of the country.

It is important to note that the pool of Nigerian players now in Europe, those who migrated to play football and those who were born in Europe form Nigeria's best hope for winning the World Cup or at least coming close to doing so. It is a rich crop of talents. It will be a travesty for Nigeria to ignore this magnificent crop of players simply because of a policy designed to exclude them or at least limit their opportunity to represent Nigeria and make the citizens happy.

I remember when Nigeria celebrated the likes of John Chiedozie playing for us from a nondescript Leytron Orient. Today, we are attracting players who are at top clubs in England, Italy, Holand, and elsewhere. Why ignore them because they are not born in Lagos or Enugu. They have Nigerian citizenship via parentage. If we are truly serious about winning or at least doing very well at the World Cup, why not get the players that give us the best chance of doing so? These are players contesting daily with the best in the world. They have graduated from the best academies, they have experienced the best training, nutrition, and psychological preparedness.

In the past, we never had a chance securing these talented players. Now they are lining up in droves to wear Nigeria's colors. We should be proud. For the first time we can enter a World Cup with a good chance of actually winning the Cup!

When I visualize Nigeria winning the World Cup or at least playing in the final of that great championship. What I dream is a team that has the likes of Alex Iwobi, Victor Osimhen, and perhaps movie Ejaria proudly wearing the famous green and white and running rings round the likes of Uruguay, England, Japan, and Argentina at a World Cup. It is a dream that we are close to realizing in our life time. Why waste it? Why not give it a try and enjoy the fruits of such a wonderful experiment?

Selection Should Include Local-Based Players 

For me, winning the Africa Cup repeatedly and achieving at the World Cup on a consistent basis is what I dream of. We are in an era when both dreams can come true but we must realize what will make it possible and what may derail it. We are at the cusp of really becoming a force that we have always dreamt about but one false step can destroy all that dream. Let's take our steps carefully and think.

I recall watching Alex Iwobi debut and play his first few games for Nigeria and he was a shadow of what we had come to expect in the English Premier League. A few months ago, we saw Joe Aribo do well against Brazil but become a shrinking violet against Togo.  The lesson? African football with its crunchy tackles and lenient refereeing is a different box of lunch. Make no mistake about it. If Nigeria is blessed with players versed in the African terrain and adjusted to the idea of European football we have a marriage made in heaven. Why not take advantage of that marriage? Why shortchange your self? Why dream of only the World Cup when you can dominate Africa and shock the world?

I heard an old man once tell me, why ignore what stares at you at home because there is a shiny object presented to you oversea? Although he was talking about fine objects in life (Your guess is as good as mine) but I find it appropriate to apply it here. Why ignore the home front because there is an abundance of talent away from home? Why not use both when a team consists of 11 and a squad 23? There could be the next JJ Okocha now playing somewhere in Akure or Jaji or Potiskum. Why ignore him because he is not on Eurosport? We saw Keshi use Igiebor in 2013 because Igiebor was the Europe-based talent but Igiebor was making little headway. Suddenly Sunday Mba happened. The locally based Mba was called to the rescue and the story was winning the AFCON. While Mba did not win the AFCON all by himself, he was a major contributor and taught us a lasting lesson -- all hands on deck! Never underestimate a local player. Years before, Amodu taught us a similar lesson when he introduced three local players to salvage a World Cup place that was destined to garbage because Bonfrere claimed there was no local player good enough for the Eagles. Will Rohr repeat the same mistake?

I realize that some have argued that all local players who are good have gone oversea. But is that not a simplistic and unrealistic view. Talent is produced on a conveyor belt and it is not static. In essence, it keeps revolving and emergence of new talent is never ending. If a player leaves to go oversea, that is a great move for personal financial growth but it does not prevent the use of that talent nor should it mean that new emerging ones should be ignored.

It should be all hands on deck! Nigeria is ready to take off. We have talents oversea, those who left the shores of Nigeria and those eligible via their parents.  We also have talents emerging regularly and based locally. Why not utilize all of them?  Why shoot yourself on the foot because of some cock and bull story about the quality of training and nutrition in Europe when those Europe-based talents have not routinely conquered local-based opponents in African competitions?