Sport: I’m not a Messiah , says Oliseh

Oliseh

Newly appointed Super Eagles Chief Coach, Sunday Oliseh has warned Nigerians not to expect too much from him because he is not coming as a Messiah even as he promised to give his best to ensure that the Nigerian national team returns to its pride of place among the comity of football playing nations.

Oliseh who spoke yes- terday in Abuja during his official presentation as the Super Eagles Chief Coach by the board of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) said the task of rebuilding national team requires the patience and support of everybody.
The former national team captain who took time to explain the roles of each of his technical assistants including Belgian Jean Francois Lusciuto, Salisu Yusuf and Al

UNVEILING: New Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh (m) was unveiled yesterday in Abuja. Here NFF President, Amaju Pinnick(l) and Sec.General Sanusi Mohammed display Oliseh’s No 15 Jersey during the ceremony
oy Agu said the state of Nigerian football at the moment is pathetic because unlike in the past, there is no individual player that can on his own propel the team to win matches.
“First of all, I am not coming as a messiah, I am not coming as man who knows it all, I am not coming as someone who can singlehandedly just turn Nigeria into Germany but I am coming as a man who has come to serve his country and ready to give a 150% even more and that is why I brought an expatriate, Lusciuto who is ready to work and without the attitude of better than thou in him. He is an expatriate who knows Africa and hungry for victory.
We need Salisu because he knows the league in and out because our aim is also to work with home based players. We need Aloy Agu because when you are talking about calmness and someone who can also channel the goalkeepers and also give tactical and technical advises to the coaches he is also one of them and that is why we are what we are.
“The state we are now in Nigeria I think we are all not very happy with it, we say it as it is, but I must be very blunt because I am among my countrymen so let us call a spade a spade. Gone are the days when we had individual players who can win matches for us out of their own individual efforts and that is what we had during my generation and the way out is this; if you don’t have great players, you need a great technical coaching crew and a great national federation to compensate for what you don’t have as regards these great players. But we have potentials even to be the best in the world, that is what I honestly believe and that is what my coaching crew also believe. “
Oliseh also used the occasion to announce that under him, there will be no place for any player who is not playing in the top league in any country where he plies his trade except for members of the age grade national teams.
He explained that the decision was taken to ensure that only quality players who are also very hungry to play for the country were given the opportunity to represent the country at international matches because according to him, playing for Nigeria is not a favour but rather an honour.


Report,
Vanguard News