Siasia, Manu in silent ‘war’ over players?

The screening exercise which is stationed in Abuja saw non league players, amateur league players and those in the Nigerian Premier League vying for spots in the team which is being built for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.After several weeks of screening, Siasia who felt he had seen enough of the local […]

The screening exercise which is stationed in Abuja saw non league players, amateur league players and those in the Nigerian Premier League vying for spots in the team which is being built for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
After several weeks of screening, Siasia who felt he had seen enough of the local talents, beamed his searchlight outside the shores of the country for players. Consequently, he released a list of 46 foreign based players he wanted to screen.
Some of Coach Manu Garba World conquering Golden Eaglets who secured clubs abroad and have since graduated to the U-20 team were included in the list of foreign players that were invited. Thus, names like Isaac Success of Granda in Spain, Taiwo Awoniyi, Kalmar FF in Sweden, Musa Yahaya, Tottenham in England and kelechi Iheanacho of Manchester City in England appeared on Keshi’s list even as they are already integral members of the U-20 team.
The other player who has received double invitation is Enyimba’s mercurial midfielder, Kingsley Sokari. The member of Home-Based Eagles is presently in the cam of the Flying Eagles but Siasia is expecting him in the camp of U-23.
The moment Siasia’s list came public, tongues wagged as most football fans felt double invitations would throw spanners in the works of the Flying Eagles coaches who are preparing their team for the Africa Youth Championship in Senegal and the FIFA World Cup in 2015.
Be that as it may, most Nigerian football fans and football pundits are sharply divided over the decision of Siasia to extend invitation to some of the players who are sure bets to represent the country at the 2015 Africa Youth Championship in Senegal.
Most of the pundits who spoke to SHOT! on the double invitations of players say Siasia should have waited until the end of the FIFA U-20 World Cup to invite the players who would excel at the global showpiece.
Former international and Enyimba FC Technical Adviser, Kadiri Ikhana feels Siasia should have waited for the U-20 players to feature in the two major championships for him to select the best among them for his team.
“Siasia should have waited for the U-20 players to play in the two major tournaments for him to pick the best among them.
“It is actually wrong for a coach to invite an under 17 player to the U-23. They should be allowed to grow gradually. It would have denied some good players the opportunity to play in the team.
“Nigeria is blessed with so many talents so I see no reason for such invitations. The best thing is for coaches to understand this and stop causing unnecessary distractions for other coaches”, he said.
Another former international and coach of Heartland, Kelechi Emetoele said it is wrong for the players in the U-20 camp to be invited to the U-23 squad for screening.
He also said Siasia should have waited for the players to play in the Africa Youth Championship and the FIFA World Cup.
“If I were Siasia, I would wait for the U-20 players to play in the two championships for me to decide those I would invite for the U-23.
“Inviting them now will no doubt cause unnecessary distractions. Moreover, since they are already in the Flying Eagles, it will be difficult for him to have enough time to assess them”.
Although mails sent to media officers of the two national teams were not answered as at the time of press, a member of the Flying Eagles backroom staff who spoke on condition anonymity said the camp of the U-20 did not understand why Siasia invited some of the U-20 players to the U-23 camp when he is not unaware of the programmes of the Flying Eagles.
He, however, said Manu Garba did not lose any sleep over the development because everybody knows that the players belong to his team and would be available for him to select.
“The invitations to some of our players surprised us because most of us did not understand why they were invited by our sister team at this time we need the services of the same players.
“One good thing is that everybody knows they have to first play for us before moving to the U-23 team. Maybe the coach of the U-23 is jumping the gun.
“He should have waited for us to conclude our tournaments before inviting these players to his team. How is he going to have enough time to assess the players he has invited?. He should have known that they are concentrating on our tournament in Senegal early next year,” he said.