Posted by The Punch on
Recently, the NFA announced the drafting of Flying Eagles coach, Samson Siasia, to the Super Eagles as assistant to another former youth coach, Austin Eguavoen.
Recently, the NFA announced the drafting of Flying Eagles coach, Samson Siasia, to the Super Eagles as assistant to another former youth coach, Austin Eguavoen.
Siasia has thus joined the growing list of youth coaches who, after a successful stint at the youth level, were 'promoted" to the senior level.
The likes of Sebastian Brodrick, Tunde Disu, Fanny Amun, James Peter, Musa Abdullah, Wily Bazuaye, Ben Dualong, Bitrus Bewerang, Stephen Keshi, etc., are some of the coaches who have enjoyed this 'privilege".
However, many as they may be, Nigeria has never produced a single coach that was successful at both junior and senior level.
The problem is such that there is lack of integrational, transitional and eventual transformational programme in the NFA that should have helped in grooming these youth coaches for the job.
Siasia should be ready to face, tolerate or minimize (as the case may be) indiscipline of various kinds in the Super Eagles. And he should be able to change the lackadaisical attitude of the players 'off field" and their lacklustre performance on field.
Odulaja A. Sakiru,Mass Comm. Dept. OOU, Ago Iwoye.
The PUNCH, Monday, August 1, 2005