Why it’s difficult for northerners to play for Eagles – Garba Lawal

Super Eagles have defeated Barrea of Madagascar 2-0 to brighten their chances of qualifying for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. As a former international and member of NFF technical committee, how happy are you with that performance? As a Nigerian and former international, I am happy with the result. I knew that it was […]

Super Eagles have defeated Barrea of Madagascar 2-0 to brighten their chances of qualifying for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. As a former international and member of NFF technical committee, how happy are you with that performance?

As a Nigerian and former international, I am happy with the result. I knew that it was not going to be an easy match. All the same, I thank God that the Eagles won and now they will concentrate on the match against Guinea in October. They have drastically reduced pressure on themselves. However, it is not yet Uhuru as the team will have to beat Guinea before we roll out the drums.

But it is becoming a tradition for Super Eagles to struggle to qualify for championships. What would you say is responsible for this?

I have said this several times. It’s like the current players we have lack character and winning mentality. Their character is very low, that’s the problem we are having. They are not like us in our days and that’s why they have continued to struggle. I don’t know for the players but it is left for them to defend their reputations. Nigerians are always talking of Eagles of those days and I always say to myself, the current players want success but why are they waiting for Nigerians to remember and talk about Eagles of those days?.

Maybe they are not well motivated to give their best?

What else do they want? They are getting attention more than we got in our days. Even the bonuses but I don’t know what’s wrong with the present players. I keep asking myself where the problem is. If you want Nigerians to remember you always, then you have to win trophies. You have to win championships. If you don’t, nobody will remember you. It still depends on the players. I want to see the present Eagles winning matches.

Sometimes you cannot offer more than what you have. Maybe it’s a case of average players as identified by former Eagles handler, Amodu Shuaibu?

Well, this is a new generation and no one can bring back some of us to play for the team. It is impossible. We have played our roles and this is the time for this new generation of players. It’s like in those days when people like Dahiru Sadi and Humphrey Edobor played for Nigeria. If they didn’t stop, some of us wouldn’t have got the opportunity to play. They had to stop to pave way for us to come into the team. We cannot come back into the team so the present players must live up to their responsibilities. It’s a case of soldier go soldier come. I don’t know but we are in a difficult situation at the moment. The present Eagles must be ready to step up their game.

Lawal, seriously why is it always difficult for players of northern extraction to play in the Super Eagles? Is it for lack of good players up north?

It is always very difficult to have one, two, three, four, five or six players from the north in the national team. I don’t know what the problem is really. Maybe we have them somewhere but it is always difficult to have them in the national team. Now we have only Ahmed Musa I think. I think players in the north lack discipline and the required patience.  If you want to come to the national team at the time you want and it does not happen as you wanted, you have to wait but how many of them are willing to wait for God’s time?. God’s time is the best. Just like some of us who came out, we made it by chance.  And we held tight to it. It was opportunity we never toyed with. Northern players will have to emulate some of us. Patience and discipline must remain their watch words. We need to have more northern players in the national team but what is happening, I cannot really say.

Most fans feel it is time for Sani Kaita to return to the national team. What is your take on this?

This is an issue for the coach of the team. I am not the manager. That’s why players need discipline and exposure. Experience matters a lot. You don’t go out there and do something stupid and at the end of the day you begin to regret your action. You have to be disciplined. I don’t know. It depends on the club side he is playing. If he is playing somewhere and is doing well, he may come back one day. What about if you don’t know where he is playing, what can one day for him? It all depends on Kaita himself.

Siasia is rebuilding the Super Eagles. Is he taking the right steps in the right direction?

It all depends on success. When you have success, nobody will see anything and nobody will talk. But without success, there is always enough room for people to see a lot of faults and say a lot of things about what you set out to achieve. If you have no success people will start to criticize you.

Would you say the local league is rich enough to feed Super Eagles with quality players?

Well, presently we have clubs that are playing continental competitions. Some of them went outside and won; some went and drew which means we have a good league. Maybe we need to focus more on our local players. Encourage them and give them more courage. That will be the solution. But now people don’t care to go to the stadia and watch the local league. This is the problem. In the past it was not like this. I don’t know what the problem is. In those days because of the passion, you see stadia packed with fans. It’s so sad when you watch the local league every week and you ask yourself, what is happening? Sometimes, you can count the people in the stadium. This is not good for our league.

You have been there before. What advice do you have for upcoming players?

Some of us have continued to talk to these players we meet. Unfortunately, most of them these days want to play professional football outside and are not ready to wait for the right time. You don’t have to be in haste. But they are always in haste to go out. I tell them to be more disciplined, show more commitment to the game. It will help them to succeed.

How was it like playing for Nigeria?

Playing for Nigeria was always something dear to my heart. It was a pleasure. I represented Nigeria twice at the World Cup which is the dream of any good player. I played in the Olympics and I played in the Nations cup. I played everything for Nigeria. I feel so fulfilled. I couldn’t have wished for anything more than this. Football made me what I am today.

What would you say was your best sporting moment?

Without any hesitation, I tell you winning the Olympic Gold medal in 1996.The Atlanta Olympic Games medal is my most prized possession.

Could you describe the feeling moment after the Dream Team I won the gold medal?

I cannot say because at that moment it was something else. It was like a huge joke, did we win the medal or what? It was just like a dream. It was hard to believe that we were champions of the world.

It is interesting to note that no coach came to Nigeria and ignored you. Most times you were drafted to play in positions you were not known for. What made you such a utility player?

It always depends on the formation of play. It is like the case of Dahiriu Sadi at 1988 Soul Olympics when he played in the left full back. We asked what was he doing in the left full back?. We knew him as a mid-field player. We kept on asking what he was doing there. But that was the formation and there was nothing he could do. It was the same with me. When you find yourself in such a situation, you adopt tactical discipline and play according to the instructions of your coach. If you fail to keep to instructions, he takes you out. In such situations, I used my little brain, my little experience and self discipline to survive.  I was never given the opportunity to practice in such positions before I was handed them during match situations. I always did my best to play according to instructions.

You are back to the country fully. Do Nigerians recognize and accord you any attention?

Of course they do and I lack words to express my gratitude. It makes me happy that I played for this country. Nigerians always remember those days. Anywhere I go people keep telling me, we are missing you guys. They say we want to have a squad like your own. And then I ask myself, what about the present players? Do they want such recognition if they stop playing in the near future?. I feel happy and so glad that I played and achieved a lot for myself and this country.

Could you down memory lane and remind your teeming admirers of the number of clubs you played for at home and abroad?

Yeah, I played for Julius Berger Lagos, 1992-1994, Esperance of Tunisia 1994-1996, Roda JC of Holland 1997-2002, Levski Sofia in Bulgeria 2002-2003, Elfsborgs Sweden, 2003-2004, Santa Clara Portugal 2004-2005, Iraklis FC Greece 2005-2007 and Shenyang Ginde in China. So in all in played for at least eight different clubs.