Amokachi reiterates need for local players, says Super Eagles’ problem beyond coaching

Former Nigeria international, Daniel Amokachi has reiterated his call for local players to make up the national football team, the Super Eagles.

Amokachi, who won the Nations Cup as a player in 1994, stated that he was a product of the local league and lamented Nigeria’s dependence on abroad-based players.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) sacked long-serving coach, Gernot Rohr, last year before bringing on Austin Eguavoen to lead the Super Eagles to the Nations Cup in Cameroon, where Nigeria exited in the second round.

Eguavoen went on to lead the team through the final phase of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, where Nigeria were beaten to the ticket by the Black Stars of Ghana.

The coach stepped down after failure to clinch World Cup ticket and the football federation is already in search of his replacement.

Speaking with the BBC, Amokachi said the problem of Nigerian football was not coaching.

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“Focusing too much on the coaching is like building a house from the roof downwards instead of starting with the right foundation and build upwards,” said Amokachi

“Do we have a solid developmental programme for our young footballers, a proper long-term plan for our national teams or develop a football identity for the game in our country?

“I am a product of the Nigerian league. But have we sorted all the issues around our domestic game, from players welfare to the lack of television rights and the chaos around the organisation of local football.

“I said something about our over-reliance on Nigerian footballers in the diaspora which was misreported in the media.

“My point is that when you consistently rely on players developed and trained by other nations to play for you, then you have seriously failed in your important role of building the future stars.

“There are bigger issues that have long bedevilled the Nigerian game and until we fix them, we will just be moving in a circle.”

Next up for the Super Eagles is the 2023 Nations Cup qualifiers, and they will discover their opponents when the draw takes place later this month.

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