Ex-international and former 3SC of Ibadan General Manager, Oladimeji Mohammed Lawal, has cried out vehemently over the mass exodus of the best young legs leaving the country in droves in search of greener pastures, cautioning that something needs to be done fast about it.
The Canada ’87 set of Golden Eaglets U-17 FIFA world cup squad, said the players are leaving mainly for economic reason while advising that the Nigerian Premier Football League (NPFL) should be made more rewarding financially and attractive enough for young players to want to stay back than preferring to go to very obscure leagues.
“Let’s be honest with ourselves, when we discover good young players do we really allow them to stay around to get the understanding of what African football is really like?
“That’s a major problem but many people are not looking in that direction.
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“If all your 17, 18 years old players are out because of economic factors, then you want them to return to play in African competitions as British, Europeans and Americans, it becomes difficult. Playing in Europe is different from playing in Africa.
“In our days we mix both. We grow up here, master the game here before having the opportunity to go out. But today, at the age of 17, 18 most of our best legs are out of the country”,he stated.
Speaking further on Super Eagles’ 2026 FIFA world cup ouster, Lawal expressed disappointment like many Nigerians considering the depth of talents the country possesses.
“Critically we just have to look at the performance of the team not the players alone. We have to also look at the administrative structure to see where we are lacking and not doing right, which is crucial.
*If we continue to deceive ourselves and pick on the players it won’t lead us anywhere rather we have to be
holistic in our approach.
“Probably our preparation was not good enough. May be the managers we are employing are not the best for the team. All these need to be put into consideration to ascertain where the fault is coming from”, he advised.
The Saudi ’89 FIFA U20 world cup Flying Eagles player, joined the bandwagon of Nigerians who have expressed their frustration over the back to back FIFA world cup miss by the Super Eagles.
