Nigerian players don’t deserve CAF award –Okocha
A former captain of the Super Eagles, Austin Okocha, has expressed disappointment over the failure of Nigerian players to contend for the Glo/CAF African Player of the Year award, saying they were not good enough to be considered for the prestigious award.
Speaking to journalists at the event, which was held at the International Conference Center, Abuja on Thursday night, Okocha said it was unfortunate that Nigerian football has “gone down drastically”.
The former Bolton Wanderers midfielder said Nigeria should accept that they are no longer ranked among the giants of African football and begin the process of returning to their deserved position.
He added that doing so would not only help the country to reposition itself for an upwards movement in FIFA rankings, it would also help the country to rise up and work towards qualifying for both the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2018 World Cup.
He said, “I don’t think any of our players at this moment deserve to be there because we have been struggling. We must try to work hard to make sure that we will have one person in contention next time. Honestly speaking, we are going through a rough period, but there is nothing to be ashamed of.
“We all need to battle and make sure we return to where we really belong. We have signs that suggest that we may qualify for Gabon, but we must work had to see it work out by acknowledging that first of all we are not doing very well, so we have to humble ourselves by starting afresh.
“Once we accept our fate at the moment, I think there will be a fresh beginning for us. Deservedly, we are at our current ratings because our results have not been very encouraging. We just need to accept it and then fight our way back.
“But we must first admit that our current form is not that good, so that we can begin to put certain measures in place to return us to where we should be by first seeking to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations. I believe that Sunday Oliseh will give us the ticket for Gabon.”
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