Former Super Eagles coach blasts home based players for not having what it takes to make the national team
Fanny Amun
By Rasheed Adewuyi
Former Super Eagles coach Fanny Amun says the mentality of home based players is the main reason why they don’t get invitation to the national team in recent past.
Amun who dropped this hint on Football Doctors a sports program on Facebook live on Sunday, disclosed that the attitude and way of thinking of the home based players, are always very bad.
The Japan 93 U-17 World Cup winning coach said, ” Olumide Harris and Duke Udi were typical example of what I am saying when they were invited to the U-20 national team in 1995.
“Olumide Harris and Duke Udi preferred to pass the ball to themselves because of their Shooting Stars connection. Udi would send the ball to our goal area instead of passing it to his teammates, and Harris would play the ball up to the opponents area and end up killing a Monkey or pluck Mongooses with his final shot.”
The Japan 93 FIFA U-17 World Cup winning coach explained that there’s nothing wrong in inviting players born by Nigerians in the Diaspora because the national team should comprise of Nigerians home and abroad.
“I don’t even know the tribes of the players I took to Japan U-17 world cup in 1993. I later discovered that there were more Igbos in the the team. It is the national team of Nigeria not a sectional team and it is very important that we give everybody equal opportunity,” Amun added.
He commended the former Nigeria Football Federation chairman Pinnick Amaju for inviting players born abroad to the national team adding, that we should not encourage such practice at the age group levels