2015 continental challenges NPL clubs’ optimism meets pessimism

It is also a known fact that it took decades for Nigeria to break the CAF Champions jinx through Enyimba, the club that won the lucrative competition back to back in 2003 and 2004.Although many Nigerians expected the People’s Elephants, as Enyimba FC is popularly known, to build on that rare feat, the story has […]

It is also a known fact that it took decades for Nigeria to break the CAF Champions jinx through Enyimba, the club that won the lucrative competition back to back in 2003 and 2004.
Although many Nigerians expected the People’s Elephants, as Enyimba FC is popularly known, to build on that rare feat, the story has not been palatable as the closest the club came to winning the Champions League again was in 2008 and 2011 when they got to the semi-finals.
This year, the story was even more pathetic as both Kano Pillars and Enyimba dashed the hopes of many Nigerians by exiting the competition at the early stages.
Next year, Pillars will once again join Enyimba in the chase for continental glory. The Masu Gida boys as Pillars are called, are not new to continental competition but apart from 2009 when they reached the semi-final stage, they have not done particularly well. This year they exited the Champions League at the preliminary stage, thereby bringing to question their credentials as reigning champions of Nigeria.
 Two other Nigerian clubs, Warri Wolves and Dolphins will be representing Nigeria in the Confederation Cup. Wolves picked one of the tickets by virtue of their third place finish in the league while Dolphins’ runners up position in the Federation Cup fetched them the other Confederation Cup ticket.
Considering the misery which Enyimba, Pillars, Wolves and Baylesa inflicted on Nigerian football fans this year, there is growing scepticism among fans who feel strongly in 2015, it will be the same old story.
However, the clubs that have picked the task of flying Nigeria’s flag in the continent next year are saying they have learnt from their past mistakes and would put up better performances. This is a solemn pledge most Nigerians have taken with a pinch of salt.
The General Manager of Kano Pillars, Alhaji Babangida Umar told SHOT! that the club is working round the clock to get the best legs to prosecute the continental assignment.
Umar said the club’s poor performance in the continent last year has necessitated the management’s decision to give the Technical Adviser, Okey Emordi a free hand to recruit quality players for the team.
 “For me I want the best preparations for the team and my state government has given us the assurance that funding the team’s campaign in the continent and local scene will not be a problem. What we have done on our part is to seek the support of our financial institutions to bail us out before the windfall from government hits our account.
“We want the team to have a training tour abroad but if that is not possible we may opt for Akwa Ibom or Kaduna for maximum concentration. Our target is the trophy and as I speak with you we have put in place all necessary arrangement for a successful outing in the continent,” Umar said.
On his part, the Technical Adviser of Enyimba FC, Coach Kadiri Ikhana said the team will bring to bear all the experiences garnered in the previous outings to achieve the feat they recorded in 2003 and 2004.  
 “We will go back to the drawing board to look at what we did in the past and some other good things that were missing in the past and build on it to have a team that can play in the finals of the CAF Champions league.
“We are not going for more players in the open market. We only assess our team and fill in the gaps that are missing for a stronger team.
“Our team has the resemblance of a national team because we are representing the country. We have done it before and we know this too well because most of the teams we meet in the CAF Champions League always have bulk of their players from their national team squad. Sometimes six or seven of the players are all in their national team. We have to do the same thing here but my plea is that the players we need should be given express clearance by their clubs,” he demanded.
Coach Stanley Eguma of Dolphins, one of the clubs that will represent Nigeria in the Confederations Cup said his major worry is lack of funds to organise his club’s pre tournament preparations. He also complained about the delay in the kick off of the domestic league.
“We are preparing well by trying to get our team ready. We have registered 22 players for the continental competition.
“The players would have resumed from break after the long season for camping for both the league and the Confederation Cup competitions but for some logistic reasons, we are not able to do that for now.
“We have about four new players and 18 from our last squad in the provisional list we sent to CAF. We allowed room for  new players because right now we cannot get all the best we need so we have created that opening by not filling all the spaces provided for the registration of players.
“Furthermore, the late commencement of the league is not good for us as a team and it has continued to affect the performance of Nigerian teams in the continent. We ended the league few weeks ago and the players have to rest. Now we don’t have time for adequate preparations for the season. All we are doing now is rushing and rushing to meet the given deadline.
Eguma reiterated that the late kick off of the domestic league will surely have adverse effect on the outing of the Nigerian clubs in the continent.
“Right now we are told the domestic league will start in March and by that time the preliminary matches of the Confederation Cup and the CAF Champions League would have started.
 “You can then see the tight spot our teams will find themselves because there is no enough room for proper blending of the new players and the old ones. This is just one predicament we go through when we do not organise our league schedules well. Often time, it leads to the exit of our clubs at the early stages of the competitions.
Eguma is however optimistic that winning the trophy is the top priority of the club even as he has his own reservations.
 “Our target is to win the trophy because the last time we played in the competition, we did well and I am aware that this time around, the expectation is for us to play in the final”.
Despite the optimism expressed by the clubs, former international, John Zaki believes it will be difficult for the clubs to excel in the continent, if they do not prepare well.
He said the late commencement of the domestic league will not augur well for the continental clubs.
“Well, my candid opinion is that the clubs may still not impress in the continent because most of the obstacles they encountered this year will still be there.
“The clubs did not prepare well. How are we sure that the clubs for next year’s competitions are going to get better preparations?. Moreover, nobody knows exactly when the domestic league will kick off. I am not so sure it will start before the continental competitions. This means our players will again struggle against opponents whose leaves must have started,” he noted.