Former Nigeria international Sylvanus Okpala has urged Super Eagles coach Jose Peseiro to use mainly home-based players, in the final game of the 2023 AFCON qualifier against São Tomé and Principe.
The Eagles have already secured the ticket to next year’s AFCON, after defeating Sierra Leone 3-2 on match-day five in Monrovia, Liberia.
Up next for the Eagles is an home game against bottom side São Tomé in the final round of games in September.
Okpala, AFCON winner in 1980, urged the Portuguese coach to use the game to try out home-based players.
“I would like the home-based players to be used for the match against São Tomé and Principe,” he said on the Breakfast Show on Brila FM.
“There’s no need to invite the main Super Eagles players whether the game will be played either home or away.“
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Okpala, a member of the late Stephen Keshi’s coaching crew that led the Eagles to win the 2013 AFCON, also urged Peseiro to invite foreign-based players who have not had regular playing time in the Eagles.
He added:“Also I expect foreign-based players who have not been regular in the team to be invited so that they will have the opportunity to play.“
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Super Eagles Board of advisers, complete sports branch
https://youtu.be/Cy5nfuMMdgA
You hit the nail on the head! Hahahahaha
Let the home based eagle qualify for CHAN before nursing ambition of representing Nigeria @AFCON
You are entitle to your opinion.The coach knows what to do.He knows what is best for the team .Thanks
World cup qualifiers begins in November, instead of using home based players that could not qualify for CHAN,it’s time to be perfecting strategy.
WHICH HOMEBASE PLAYERS. WHY WE ALWAYS LIKE TO BE DECEIVING OURSELVES CONCERNING THE ISSUE OF HOMEBASE PLAYERS IN SUPER EAGLE TEAM. HOMEBASE EAGLES THAT CANNOT QUALIFY FOR ORDINARY CHAN AND U-23 AFCON COMPETITION, WILL NOW BE THE ONE TO INVITED TO SUPER EAGLE’S TEAM WHEN WORLD CUP QUALIFIER WILL SOON START BY NOVEMBER.
*** IAM NOT SAYING HOMEBASE PLAYERS SHOULD NOT BE INVITED TO SUPER EAGLE. THE PURPOSE WHY CAF ORGANIZED CHAN COMPETITION IS TO CREATE AN AVENUE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF HOMEBASE TEAM IN EACH COUNTRY. OUR HOMEBASE TEAM SHOULD BE ALWAYS TRYING TO BE QUALIFY FOR THIS COMPETITION. ANY HOMEBASE PLAYERS CLAIM TO BE A GOOD PLAYER SHOULD GO & PROVE HIMSELF FIRST IN CHAN COMPETITION. AND THEN, INVITED TO SUPER EAGLE TO FIGHT FOR SHIRT.
** AS WORLD CUP QUALIFIER IS AROUND THE CORNER, THE SAO TOME GAME SHOULD BE USED AS TEST GAME FOR PAST UNINVITED PLAYERS THAT DID WELL IN EUROPE, TOGETHER WITH FEW GOOD HOMEBASE PLAYERS WITH OSIMHEN BE THEIR CAPTAIN (so that he will stand a chance to become Higher Goalscorer and WIN 2023 AFRICAN FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR).
*** PLAYERS TO BE INVITED SHOULD BE THE LIKE OF :
** SEBASTIAN-OSIGWE, OLORUNLEKE,
OSOCHIMA
** EBUEHI, JORDAN-TORUNARIGHA
** BRUNO-ONYEMAECHI, DURU
** ONYEDIKA, ALHASSAN
** VALENTINE, AJAYI
** GIFT-ORBAN, SARKI(U-20)
** CHUBA-AKPOM, BONIFACE
** OSIMHEN (CAPTAIN), DESSERS
** EJUKE, LOOKMAN
These corrupt folks would do anything or say anything to satisfy their greeds, all because they want to sell these below average gra gra no ball sense leg breakers. We ve many untested young hungry foreign based players, they’re talking about home based or jungle based players
Nice idea by slyvanus Okpala I think the coach of Super Eagles should buy his idea an use home base and those that haven’t had the opportunity to play for this last game
So, instead of using the match to blend and strengthen the team for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers, you and Okpalla want to waste that opportunity and use a bunch of loser Home based players who can’t even win a WAFU match?
Some Nigerians could be incredibly dumb!
Please peseiro if you want to succeed don’t listen to Okpala because if you use home-based players and sao tome win in Nigeria this same Okpala will say you lack tactics
I did not blame all the ex who are now agents and promoter of home base players at all cost even at the detriment of se and at the expense of fans happiness.
Shey if government and nff had put them all on pension pay role, may be they will be having enough to chop rather looking how to use se platform for marketing purpose.
These ppl (ex) are hungry, they need to survive hence their romans with home base players.
To our ex the benefit they will get from marketing and selling home base out weigh se progress and fans happiness.
Hmmmmm shioooooo
The home base should prove themselves on local scene first before they will start looking for unmerited favour.
Oga Sylvanus,
Thank you for expressing your Opinion. You do well. But you see that boy called Victor Osimhen, na only injury go fit stop am from playing in that game. He must score another four or more goals in that game to take his tally to 20 or more goals in just 26 caps. He should send goose pimples to other teams and strikers in Africa and all over the world. There is an opportunity for a friendly within the same window, so your local players can queue for that. Ronaldo or Messi don’t select international games, be it competitive or not. Enough of this over confidence mentality. Osimhen is the next big thing in world football. Our poster boy. A kind of striker we have been praying for since Yekini retired and even up till his unfortunate demise. What we are expecting the coach to do is to try out who can better supply those killer passes, long balls, movements that will make Osimhen do better as a striker. Napoli got him their no 77 and we all saw the results. He tries to score at every single opportunity. He must finish the campaign as the top scorer convincingly. Most of the SE fans of this time never watched Yekini play but God has given them Victor, let them enjoy him.
I disagree with the home based players to play the last match. Instead, our irregular players should be used for that match.
Players like Dessers, Ebuehi, Nwabali, and so on. Our home based players are not needed for the last match. Irr o. God bless Nigeria!!!
let them go and prove themselves in CHAN Eagles and Qualify. Make a name for themselves the right way and not by Ex Footballers decieving themselves and these poor homebase boys that they can compete with European players levels above them because let me tell you bro, Take NPFL strongest team and put against the weakest European league team lets say even Bulgarian league or Croatian league not to talk.of Russia and so forth even Saudi teams (that are considered levels below European teams) they, will be beaten black and blue now why must they try and punch above thier weight?
Why not try the best and most honest route to Europe like Etebo them?. I mean that’s how he made it. Let me tell you any player coming out from Nigerian League has to go through the education in Europe at a later age before grasping the technique we all enjoy watching week in week out and see from players playing ball in the top leagues? Etebo finally made it in Europe but unfortunately he couldn’t push further to the top elite like we see from Players like Osimhen Iheanacho, Awoniyi Chukwueze and co who got thier education from our Academies( Nigeria’s best hub for international export) and we’re lucky enough to get snapped up by big European teams early at young ages and get thier education in thier teens. And I must point out Academies in Nigeria a churning out talent like European talent season in seaon out so why is Ex Internationals rocking our head all the time about home based players?.. if it is not for financial gains
AGAIN IF NPFL PLAYERS ARE GOOD ENOUGH LET THEM GO AND DOMINIATE CHAN AND CAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE LIKE ENYEAMA DEM. AND PUT THIER MONEY WHERE THIER MOUTH IS BECAUSE, I TELL YOU ANY TEAM IN AFRICA THAT DOES THAT USUALLY HAS SOME SERIOUS GEMS AND XFACTOR PLAYERS THERE IN THEM PERIOD!. ..I.E ENYEAMA (Enyimba) Al Ahly Egyt ( Aboutrika).. i can go on and on. And even then Europe is still higher than those teams because some players who make it out of there still can’t make it in Europe..
Look at Etebo, Musa and most recently Orban, Boniface all these players made it to Europe without and hype and worked thier way up the ranks and rightly got selected incase of Musa and Etebo but, in Orbans and Boniface they deserve it but, these guys dont care about right its all financial gain with NPFL
Make una stop to dey deceive una self bikonu!
Why can’t Nigeria just accept our blessings of all the talent we have in Europe now both from Academies exports( Osimhen, Rafael Onyedika, Yusuf Alhasan dem) Players who worked thier way to Europe and are now making name for themselves ( Orban and Boniface) snd dual nationals who still need convincing and the ones already who have committed ( Destiny Edojie, Michael Olise, to name a few and your Ebuehi’s and co’s.. why must we be playing with our Golden period of churning out Top quality’s who are currently established or even establishing themselves in a very positive way
*Udogie* Typo
I mean okay Odion Ighalo also made it to Europe from Nigerian and had to get the education and by the time he hit Granada FC Spain almost ready but still needed some hard work to do and by Watford dats he was ready for Super Eagles because he got noticed to headlines. Just like Vincent Enyeama ( who by the time Enyimba won Champions league 2 i mean you cant despute his invite even from NPFL as that is the only way an NPFL player can back up his direct invite but even Enyeama had to workd hard but talent speaks for itself in that case
Inshort Nigeria should respect ourselves and our talents now. Infact the rule should now be if any player must make it to SE from NPFL it must be like Ighalo Who made headlines in Europe before being selected.
I know Nigerians you will say I am not saying that Ighalo is relevant now or Musa i am just acknowledging there was a time they merited SE call ups and the way they got that any player coming out from NPFL that is the only way they deserve a shirt any other way is fraud
Oga Okpala thanks for your suggestion. I will suggest you wait for your time to become Eagles coach then you can use any play you want even from the academies to prosecute your matches since you don’t know how to prepare a team for competition like AFCON.
In the first place, what do you take our senior national team for? An academy or a practicing ground.
Or what do you think that follows after qualifying for a tournament. Is it a time to go to sleep or a time to strengthened and get the team ready.
Or what do you take Sao Tome team for? An academy or our CHAN EAGLES, one of the NPLF team. Or do you think they are coming for a jamboree?
You may wish to ask Guinea Bissau how they struggled to beat them with only one goal and Sierra Leone was held to 2 apiece.
Moreover, is it the chan eagles which could not beat a local team to qualify for the tournament you want the coach to pitch against professionals.
No matter how ill a lion may be that will warrant a goat to go visit him
Here I rest my case
I agree with him. But in addition to home based players, we should also invite some home based basket ball and volleyball players as well. Let them try football, maybe it will work for them. We should also try some table tennis players. Maybe we can discover some hidden gems from there. Heck, let’s just throw open the camp and invite market women selling at various markets around the country. There are many talents that may be discovered. We may even discover some talents that Waldrum can take to the world cup.
This guy eh you won’t kill me with laughter
These people fail to realize that international matches are an opportunity to make the fans happy. Instead of inviting the best players to thrill the fans, they want to ruin it for the fans. They keep insisting on selection that is not based on merit. If Peseiro uses home based players as he requested, and we struggle in the game, the next thing will be calls for Peseiro’s sack. Leave him to do his job, for where. They will be coming out of the woodwork making bizarre suggestions. The home based have a channel they can use to come into the lime light, and that is CHAN, and club continental competitions. Let them focus on that. If they excel there, then SE invite is possible. SE is for the best of the best only!
Okpala or whatever your name is, you pple should just keep quiet. Ex players from other African countries are taking up Leadership role in their FA and doing very well. Samuel Eto’o an example. Others taking up coaching job. The likes of Yaya Toure and Co but all you and your fellow ex players don’t want to go further and that’s fine you can just retire from football related activities rather than causing distractions and soliciting for amateur overaged home based players who can’t even qualify for Caf Champions League and get to the knock out stage year in year out tacklers of winning it. Ordinary CHAN to qualify na problem. U-23 Afcon self dem no gree qualify but it’s SE you want to promote them to. What for exactly ? To come and disgrace the National team even further.
If not for their own selfish reason. Regulare SE players are even having hard time to blend together & play good football, yet you want to add Mediocre players that don’t even understand the football basic.
For couple of years now. We only discover talents from our academies and thank God for the management and owners of those academies.
Ronaldo has scored lot of international goals playing the likes of San Marion and all. Likewise other good European strikers like Harry Kane. So please don’t give stupid advise that will deprive Osimhen of getting more International goals in other to break Yekinni record.
You all ex international can just keep your mouth short and focus on your sporting bet companies if you’ve nothing reasonable to say
The highly decorated goalkeeper is entitled to his opinion which is personal. I suggest that if Nff wants to expose the home based players, they should use the opportunity provided during the international break to organize matches for chans team against other worthy teams in Africa and other parts of the world. Se should be for the best of the best local and foreign based Nigerians
I have noticed that big teams like England, Portugal and even Argentina don’t rest their main players and strikers even for a dead rubber match. Why must our own be different?
Winning every match is what affects your ranking and the pot you will be placed for tournament proper.
The likes of Osihmen shouldn’t be dropped at all. So that he can increase his goal tally. Home base players should chill. Just like Rohr said, u invite a home base player today, he will become foreign base tomorrow. Let them start with chan first