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Double Header Decider!
By Toyin | November 12, 2009
We have come to the cross roads where one wrong turn leads to a dead end, an end without qualification for the 2010 world cup in South Africa! This Saturday, November 14, 2009 is going to be either a great day or a sad day for a lot of Nigerians as the string of hope remaining would have been strengthened or snapped at the end of that day. Nigeria, a potentially great nation in any imaginable human endeavour is again at the mercy of other countries to qualify for the first world cup to be held in Africa. We hope that Mozambique would do us a favour by beating Tunisia and that Kenya would not be too fit for our over pampered stars to deal with.
And so we would be fighting two wars simultaneously on Saturday. Even America is finding that very difficult to do literarily! We are like the proverbial farmer that counts its chickens before the eggs are hatched. We think we are the best in Africa and yet are not ready to meet the demands of success. We are proficient in building castles in the air and do not know how to move into it. Why did it ever have to come to this?
Ghana, Cote D’Ivoire and Cameroon (most certainly), our contemporaries in African football are home and almost dry in this same quest. Ghana did it with two games to spare while the Ivorians triumphed majestically in their group. Cameroon, who fumbled in the beginning, has since turned around their fortune and the prospect of their qualification is right within their control; they just need to do the job and not wait for someone to lose somewhere!
Not a few people thought that Nigeria should qualify without too much stress from the group when the draw was made. We thought that even if Tunisia cannot and should not be written off; we can ably hand both Kenya and Mozambique. What a miss? We struggled against all the teams and only relied on supreme efforts from Ozaze to defeat Mozambique at the death in Abuja. Had the referee in Maputo in the first game of the group been the timid type, our fate would have been buried long time ago.
Right here in our ‘home’, Kenya, Tunisia and Mozambique ran rings round our Super Eagles. Had Kenya been blessed with a top class finisher, they would have beaten us in Abuja! Our midfield was not as mobile and physically fit as theirs was and well, Vincent did his best! The same could be said of our other matches as we struggled to assert ourselves as a force in African football.
While we were still celebrating our goal against the Tunisians, they replied with an immediate thunderbolt. Enaremo gave us a lifeline but our defense connived to gift the Arabs an equalizer. We all know the story that has led us to Saturday. Now we are all praying and believing God for a miracle. Pray me, are those other countries serving the devil? The truth of the matter is that Heaven helps those who help themselves!
Just as Nigeria and Tunisia are looking to secure the lone ticket to the world cup, Kenya and Mozambique want to go to the CAN in Angola. So there’s no picnic anywhere for anybody. There are lots of things at stake. National pride, revenge, history, relevance etc, name it. Of all the countries, the biggest loser could be Nigeria. Having not featured at the world cup sin 2002, a generation of players will be retiring without tasting what it is like to be at the ‘great challenge’. And for a football crazy nation like ours, this would be a major tragedy.
Therefore, as we match towards this day, my advise to the Super Eagles is to be prepared to fight honourably for 98 minutes. They must be determined to write their names in gold. Their minds must not be divided; they can’t afford to think about Tunisia-the job at hand is Kenya. Defeat them they must! Since they have been training in secret, it must mean that they are ready to surprise us. We would forgive their sins of the past and be reconciled with them as soon as we qualify for the world cup. Anything short of this would be unacceptable.
Coach Ahmodu, this is your last chance! Never would it be possible for you to return as head coach of the national team if this quest ends in a failure. Why? You must be the record holder in the number of times appointed into this position. And ‘am quite clear that you have not really had any outstanding achievement during your spells. If you swing this one and then go on to get us to at least the quarterfinals in South Africa; you would have over achieved!
Please use the best and prepared players; nothing must be left to chance. The Kenyans won’t take prisoners; likewise we must not! Super Eagles fly, fly like your great namesake and do your fatherland proud. The time is now to show your true spirit and bring smiles to the faces of millions of your compatriots. If you do this; we will all smile at the end as something tells me that Tunisia will not triumph in Maputo!
Topics: Biz Football, Hot Stars, Cold Sands, Nigerian Football, Success Pills, Who Will Win |
November 13th, 2009 at 12:32 am
Dear Toyin, it was with disappointment I read your last piece which made me call you directly almost immediately. I find your last article patronising and very uncharacteristic of you. Let me make it clear that I love Nigeria and wish Nigeria qualified for the world cup but that is wishful thinking. When other countries decided to define a program and work seriously towards qualification, we went to sleep. Our lazy stars whose fortunes are now clearly dwindling in the name of undescribable injuries and lack luster preformances. 4 - 5 years ago, you could count at least 4 Nigerian players in the premier league playing consistently at their clubs, I am struggling to think of one who plays regularly apart from Olofinjana and for what team? Hull.
We have never been serious and rather than for you to whip up patrotric sentiments, I think you should call a spade a spade: Nigeria cannot qualify for the world cup and Amodu Shuiabu should have been sacked long ago. Reading your article and your comments that Nigerians will forget everything just if the Super Eagles qualified means you must be making wide ranging assumptions. It is like saying that you will congratulate a Son who just managed to be promoted to the next class despite failing all his papers. Even if we were to qualify, how on earth can you suggest that Amodu should take the Eagles to the world cup when it is clear he has not real substance that can add value to our country. What single tactical difference has he made since he took over the eagles job.
How many stars are in the Tunisian team, what is the net worth of their players compared to that of our rich lazy stars, yet they have gotten the better of us.
Toyin, before I loose respect for your views, let me make it clear that I am passionate about your blogs including your political one at http://www.toyinakiode.com but your patronising article about the eagles brings to fore a certain mentality about us Nigerians that even when we have fail to work, we want to eat sometimes calling on the “God of Miracle” the same God who endorses hardwork and diligence. There is no space for the Eagles (The Greedy Eagles abi na Green) in South Africa 2010. Let us sit at home and mourn our fate. I will be routing for the English team, after all they were brave enough to sack an indeginous coach, took clear action to progress, qualified with 2 games to go and two weeks after their last group games they are back in the middle east for a friendly with no less a country than Brazil. That is the attitude and the courage we want to support at SA 2010 not a bunch of lazy, overpaid, unenthusiastic and visionless group of players coached by a mediocre non-achiever.
Haba, the truth must be told, sentiments aside.
November 13th, 2009 at 9:56 am
Toyin,
You have just written like a typical Nigerian, when will we ever learn NOT to be hopeful in an hopeless situation, we caused ourselves to be in this situation and we are now calling on poor Nigerians to help ‘pray’ to God to make us qualify, why would i leave discussing my personal problems with my God and start praying for a bunch of irresponsible players and coach and country sef. Please tell me if we are serious about going to this world cup when 24 hours to the match in Kenya, the Nigerian team is stranded in Abuja and cannot get a flight to Kenya, they should have boarded and arrived in Kenya since wednesday, but as at 7am Friday, i authoritatively confirmed the NFF or NFA or bunch of idiots cannot arrange a flight for our players……is this seriousness?(The Tunisians have been in Maputo since Tuesday warming up and acclamatising).
Just as Jonah said above, call a spade a spade, we do not deserve to go to the world cup…..PERIOD
Biodun
November 13th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
@ Jonah,
I appreciate your comments and the time taken to put them down.
Please note that I do not encourage planlessness nor indulge laziness. Both have been the albatross of our national life save from the issues of tribalism and corruption!
I clearly captured the issues you raised; please go through the post again. I only came short of calling for the head of Ahmodu should Nigeria make it to the world cup.
Ours is a potentially great country and Nigerians are hard working people but most of our leaders are nothing to write home. Here’s the dilemma. Should we sacrifice the happiness of millions of people only so that a few administrators would lose their jops? Even in our clime, it is now glaring that poor performance engenders greater appointment!
Please keep reading as your comments are valued!
November 13th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
It didn’t really have to come to this. We had our opportunities and we blew them all. I guess it’s high time we learn to accept responsiblity for our mistakes and square up to the facts just as they are.
For the sake of patriotism, my heartfelt wishes goes out to the national team with great hopes for victory given all permutations fall in our favor.
God bless Nigeria.
November 16th, 2009 at 11:16 pm
Thank God your final line came to pass! God indeed must be a Nigerian.