Former internationals will soon take over the NFF – Henry Nwosu

Henry Nwosu, a former midfielder and member of the victorious 1980 Africa Cup of Nations squad believes that with the election of Austin Okocha as head of the Delta State FA, ex-players will begin to get their due in Nigerian football. He also delves into the matters of the Super Eagles coach as well as the youth teams in this interview with Goal’s Shina Oludare.

Many had thought that with the preparation of the Golden Eaglets for the 2015 African U17 Championship, they should have brought home the trophy but that was not the case as they finished fourth. What did you think went wrong in Niamey?
They had the best of preparations and defeated big teams in the Nigerian league enroute the competition but I think probably they lost concentration on the game and were a little more complacent in their approaches. These factors I think caused them the title in Niger Republic.

Some have called for the overhauling of the team towards a successful outing at the Fifa U17 World Cup. What is your take on this?
Of a truth, the technical crew might still bring in newer faces and fresher legs to complement the efforts of other players in the team as we prepare for the big stage. Asking for an overhaul of the team with few months to the Fifa World Cup will be very wrong and counterproductive.



Any advice for coach Emmanuel Amuneke as he prepares his team for the World Cup later this year?
I am sure Emmanuel Amuneke and his team must have seen their lapses at the African U17 Championship, all they need to do is work on those shortcomings and correct them. Also bearing in mind that these lads are still very young, they need to be counseled and see how they can improve on their individual game as well as their team play. This will help them going forward.



The Flying Eagles begin their campaign at the African Youth Championship in Senegal this weekend. How high do you think Manu Garba’s team would fly?
I would advise them to put on maximum concentration. They should learn from what happened to the Golden Eaglets, who after beating every team on their way to the championship thought they had arrived. You cannot take it away that Manu Garba’s side who won their entire warm up games including the Nigeria Premier League Super Four. They need not underrate any team, they should remain focused and take every game as it comes then victory will be theirs.



With our exploits in football at the lower cadre, is it not sad that we have non-existent player progression?
That has been the case over the years but with the latest trend in Nigerian football where the U17 players graduate to the Flying Eagles and then the Dream Team down to the Super Eagles, let’s fold our arms and pray the transition continues. Our football administrators should be willing to promote any young talent to the next cadre of the national team not minding his age. I don’t see why a talent like [Kelechi] Iheanacho is still out of the senior national team. Put him there and he will learn and gain valuable experience. It happened to me when I played amongst the Odegbamis and Chukwus . The national team selectors then, despite my young age, still deemed it fit to invite me to the national team. I was shown respect by my teammates and I gave them the respect as well. This should be the standard towards allowing young players grow and that will help us a lot.



I am sure you are aware of the inability of the Super Eagles to get a permanent manager.
If [Stephen] Keshi is not there for now, he has his immediate assistant Daniel Amokachi who has been doing well in his absence. At the end of the day, if the NFF and Keshi fail to iron out their differences, then someone else should be allowed to step in. For now, Amokachi should be given the nod to handle our national team with the supervision of Amodu Shaibu. If this is done, things will be well for us.



In your active days as a footballer, the Super Eagles team was seen as unbeatable as they sent unending shivers down the spines of oppositions, why is that no longer the case today?
The craze of our boys going abroad to play their professional football has been a bigger factor. Most of these players can’t play for their local governments back home but they want to go abroad to play for teams like Barcelona, Chelsea, and Arsenal when they are not fully mature and prepared for it. And when they earn the “foreign-based” tag, they are invited to play for the national team, and the result is having half-baked players play for the Super Eagles.



As a way of solving the problem you just painted, would it not be preferable then that our senior national team is made up of only locally based talents?
That is the problem, you can’t have the senior national team made up of only locally based talents. It must have a blend of the foreign professionals too, and most of these foreign-based we invite to prosecute international matches are mere benchwarmers for their respective teams abroad.



As we prepare for the resumption of the Nigeria Professional Football League, have you thought of the grey areas that need more attention?
We need improvement when it comes to security for match officials because if the referees are well protected, I can bet you that they will do better than what they are doing now. Due to fear of losing their lives, they are usually tempted to support the home teams which should not be so. Also, another key area is the playing turf. If the pitches are good, you will witness some good football artistry.



How do we ensure our stadiums are filled to capacity during league games?
Thanks for this question. I have said it several times our league organizers should look into this to ensure its growth. But of a truth, how do you expect the fans to watch football league games when the teams they are coming to watch cannot produce the best? In my playing days, the local league had stars that the fans were always eager to watch, but that is not the same today. Our local league players take a portion of this blame too because they only do what their coaches tell them to do. They never deem it fit to improve on their skills and abilities on their own.



What does Jay Jay Okocha’s election as Chairman of the Delta State Football Association mean to ex-internationals?
Definitely, most of us are looking forward to the next Nigeria Football Federation election but there is no way you can find your way in there if you are not rooted in the politics of the game starting from the grassroots. Okocha’s victory is a welcome development and I can assure you that very soon, we will be there to take charge of our football towards ensuring it is run the way it should be.